It’s important to guide your child after he commits a mistake, it makes him prudent. Expressing your love for your child is also no less important, it makes him feel confident and safe. However, it’s no lesser important to make your child realize how fortunate he is to have a caring set of parents, loving grandparents, food in plenty and of choice, a home with a room of his own, good health and access to education. How many of us do that and how? Share your inputs.
Its really important to tell the child what right or wrong has he/she done. Appreciating by the way of clapping, kissing, patting are all the ways to cheer them up and motivate to repeat that good gesture. At the same time, scolding, time-outs, and oral warnings become important if a child commits and repeats mistakes. Although, I have never expressed my daughter that how lucky she is to have caring, loving and comforting environment around but often visited orphanages with her (since she was 2 years) to enable her to realize how lucky she is to have parents and family. Whenever we distribute things/eatables to the under-privileged (may be at temples, roadside), I always ask her to do it and she does it lovingly. I am trying not to express orally, but making her realize that she is fortunate enough to stand at the privileged side. It has also inculcated a sense of sharing in her. She would not deter sharing even her favorite chips, chocolates and toys since she has been brought up realizing the fact that to share what one has received by God’s grace makes her a well mannered girl and mom’s sweet doll.
Both of us, as parents, keep telling our children on every possible situation. But, yes, I do understand that actions speak louder than words. So what we have decided now is to take them to the world of underprivileged. I recently happened to meet the Secretary of a nearby Sai Baba Trust and had a long discussion to have an insight including as to how we can extend help in person apart from financial aids. The trust runs a school too apart from other activities like sponsoring child education, feeding the poor on festivals and important occasions, collective marriages etc. On my request, he assured us that he will let us know the dates when such things happen so that we can take our children and let them do whatever their little hands can. 🙂
Wrap your child’s old clothes, toys, accessories in front of him or her but dont answer his/her questions like mumma why are you wrapping my favorite t-shirt and then take your child to orphanage and tell him to unwrap his belongings ….After that, I am sure you know what will happen and he/she will understand the real meaning of fortune and will say …When we will come here again ? Or will say mom you know that girl in pink dress took my gogs or will say…….find out yourself what your child will say ?