Columnists
The Good life we wrongly give our children
China celebrated Children’s Day. Vast majority of the parents took their youngsters to museums or parks over the weekend to celebrate their day.
More than 300 parents took their children to visit a luxury holiday villa in the southern city of Qing Yuan, apparently in the hope that it will inspire the youngsters to seek riches when they grow up. At the same time others decided the time was better spent on “wealth education”.
Parents in China have been showing their children the trappings of wealth in order to encourage them to desire success. According to most Chinese parents wealth represents a higher social status in this country, and every parent wants their children to understand that from an early age.
Though this is the case the idea hasn’t gone down well among some people who say that this is a sign of “a sick society with distorted values”.
Other critics say that when these children grow up they are likely to discover that money doesn’t bring happiness. In the more philosophical perspective ‘Wealth is not money – wealth is a man of thought, mind, skill, emotion and love.” This is what the Chinese parents ought to have taught their children.
It is common that children of rich and wealthy people don’t have the best life everyone would expect them to have.
Their lives are usually marred with issues like no job, failed marriage, multiple arrests, drugs and so on.
Fortunately, children of some wealthy parents can grow up responsibly, successfully and aware of their opportunities. This only requires that parents nurture and prepare their children into sellable and self sustaining individuals ready to handle life and keep their heads up on their own.
Mistake number one; we want our children to have an easier life than us and we go a head to provide it.
But what value does it do for a child to have an easier life or the advantages we did not have, if they do not appreciate that easier life? Unless the children have had some struggle or hard work, they do not know or recognize their advantages.
Children should be made to do their own homework, repair their own bikes and toys, make their own mistakes along the way and learn from them. The children can never know the luxuries they have unless they saw how others lived differently.
They need to visit homes of unfortunate and poor families to be able to appreciate and realize how blessed they are and the great privileges they have in life. They also have to be taught that such privileges come with a price.
As long as they believe that good things come freely on a silver platter, they will never work to attain all the good things they dream of. Instead of donating a car to your children, make them work for it and save until they acquire it. That’s the only way they can attach value to that car.
Much as children think that it is their right to study they must also be reminded that it is their responsibility to go to school and pass. This allows them to have goals that are focused on careers that add value to society and accomplishments that help others. They should know that rights move with responsibilities.
Some parents have deliberately made their children contribute tuition for their education in order to have them value the education they receive at school. Lets them participate in achieving the good life rather than providing it to them while they rest in their comfort zones.
Comments
