Raising Children Yesterday and Today
Riccardo Joseph
Haiti
ENG 1300
Can you imagine that children’s behavior would become a real problem today! What has changed? Are they badly educated by their parents or are they exposed to many more difficulties resulting from the new way of life? This drastic transformation raises a lot of questions, and I think the most important question is: how should we raise our children in today’s world. I would raise my children in comparison to the way I was raised
Nowadays, very often we hear that children are involved in many crimes. Sometimes, they sexually assault and even kill people. Many parents think that this situation must change because some of those children might become serial killers. I think children are suffering from a lack of tenacity of their parents and from the bad effects of our way of living.
I was born and raised in Haiti. Earlier in my childhood, my parents were very strict about the environment and the conditions in which I was involved. They taught me how to prepare the road in order to become a real man today. They always wanted me to share my opinions. I was really involved in the family. Every Sunday, we went to church because that was the only way where we could hear something that was isolated from political and environmental pressure. I had the spiritual quality that made me think twice about human life today. Education was our main priority. On Saturdays, we used to play scrabble in order to improve our vocabulary. Anytime I had a problem and reacted emotionally, my mother tried to teach me how to deal with it: “A problem with a solution is not a problem anymore, you have to cope with the situation,” she said. Those was her thoughts about being in trouble. These thoughts helped me discover the reality, what was right and what was wrong in our society. My friends were always warmly welcomed by my parents. It seems that we were all together in one family. With them, I learned how to practice tolerance, and I also learned that everyone is different and has his/her own intellectual capacity. Money was everything for me but I remembered one day that my father told me that money is useful but at the same time it can destroy everything. “Do not let you be dominated by money,” he said. They taught me how to be respectful. My parents played a big part in what I am today. Therefore, how would I raise my children?
Children today should be raised in a way where they will be able to make their own decisions. They should be able to distinguish what is good or bad. In today’s world, things are getting more and more complicated. People have to choose what they want to do with their lives. As an example today they allow gay marriage. I would prepare my children to face all those kind of pressure. I would spend my time with them as much as possible. I would show them love and affection like my parents did to me. I would teach them how to be happy with themselves, because today's children try to adopt some attitudes that are not theirs. They want to reject their backgrounds because of peer pressure, pressure of people in their surroundings.
I would show them to know who they are. After years, I would try to get them involved in interaction programs where they could learn the basic skills of collaboration and leadership. By this way, they would know how to assume their responsibilities. For example, I remember that I used to go to school by myself and study on my own while my parents were expecting me to have good grades, but they did not want to help me by checking my school work.
I would teach them how to fight for their rights and at the same time not to restrain the rights of others. They would have to develop kindness and sincerity because I cannot live where there are always quarrels. I would teach them how to stay away from negative people, because they can ruin their lives. Those people never think about something positive, and at the same time they try to force you to believe in their doctrines. I would always tell them that money and background should be considered as little values. As men, I would advise them to try setting their goals as soon as possible even though they would be subject to change, because the worst thing is to live without a goal in your mind.
Well, raising a child today is much more difficult than it was in the past. Nowadays, parents are more overwhelmed about what is happening in the world. They have too much pressure that will cause them to neglect the education of their children because they become afraid of the future. However, we must not forget that children are the next generation, the hope, and the future of the world. Why should we be careless about them? Do not let the negative side of the society reflect on their faces.