Robert's Reflections
October 01, 2000

Archive

Raising Children

Contrary to everytlnng we have been told, raising happy, healthy children is not supposed to be hard work . I know that seem wrong, but do you remember your parents and especially your grandparents, working hard at raising their children? When we compare todays complex approaches, methods & philosophies of "parenting' (as it is now called, to the simnple down-to-earth, common sense approach to child rearing of previous generations, we can see a pattern.  Further, several disturbing trends come to light These will be discussed in my upcoming series of lessons on this topic, which will begin after the Gospel Meeting.

When Grandma said no, did we argue? We're still here , aren't we? But today, for many parents "no" means little or nothing. The children appear to be in charge of the home. They instill guilt, manipulate, and push until Mom and Dad give in. So what should parents do? That is what I hope to share with you over the next few weeks, I will share with you a six-point plan for raising healthy, happy children.

By healthy, I mean a child that has a positive, achievement-oriented attitude toward the realities and challenges of life. And by happy, I mean a child having a good self-esteem.

In the first place, our children have the right to expect us to meet their needs for protection, affection, and direction. But they do not have the right to expect us to build our world around them and all their whims and wants. Children come into the world having the idea that they are at the center and everyone around them exists to meet their wants and needs, And that is true up until about two years. If we do our job correctly as parents, we will see a gradual movement of our children out of the center, and we temporarily step into the center of their world. As they get older, God takes His rightful place as the center of the child's universe, with other relationships in various places just off center. More to come.

Robert