There are several cliche sayings, that over time become useless or untrue. Two of those for me would be "Children should be seen and not heard" and "Everyone deserves to be loved"
Now before you start the hate comments let me explain myself. Everyone DOES deserve to be loved, but more over, we deserve to be liked.
I was in my local grocery store the other day and there was a woman sitting on a bench by the door. Her kids were running up to her and yelling happily for her. The woman kept her eyes glued to her phone. She didn't look up, she didn't smile, she just kept on with her texting...or whatever she was doing. When her children reached her they grabbed her arms, excited that they had reached her. She took their hands, stood up, and walked out the door, all without sparing them a glance. This made me extremely sad. I once heard a youth pastor say "Kids should feel celebrated, not tolerated."
Most children know that their parents love them, but how many of them know that their parents LIKE them? I always knew that my Granddaddy loved me. It was something I never questioned, but there were times that I wondered if he really liked having me around. I think this is a serious problem now a days. How many of us go out of our way to show the children around us that we like them? That we enjoy their company? And this doesn't just go for parents.
This was a gift that my mother always gave me. I never, ever had to question whether or not she enjoyed my company, my personality, my jokes, my talents. She always made it a point to tell me that even if I wasn't her daughter she would be my friend. This is a great blessing that not everyone has, that not everyone has gotten.
I encourage you, if you're a parent, to spend time with your kids, doing what they want to do, laughing and hanging out with them. I'm not saying by any means we should give up our parental rights and try to be friends with our children, but there is such a gift in knowing that your parents enjoy you as a person, and not just put up with you because you're their responsibly.
If you don't have children, or work with them on a regular basis, make sure you let the children around you know that you seek out their company, because you enjoy them.
A Mother's Prayer
"Oh give me patience when wee hands
Tug at me with their small demands.
And give me gentle and smiling eyes.
Keep my lips from hasty replies.
And let not weariness, confusion or noise
Obscure my vision of life's fleeting joys.
So when, in years to come my house is still
No bitter memories its rooms may fill."
-Author Unknown
No comments:
Post a Comment