Childhood was not what I will describe as totally enjoyable (even though in many ways I believe it is much more fun than adulthood – hehehe!). I remember coming home from school – with my mum and my siblings – and after lunch we will again have what I will call ‘school 2’. We bring our class work to the dining table for my mum to see what we have done in school and we then deal with the home work together before we could think of TV (it’s not like we really had a choice than to wait for the national anthem to be played by NTA then before the broadcast will commence anyway - lol!). I can still remember my mum tenaciously teaching me how to wash my clothes before I was 10 and how she had us arrange our school uniform, socks and bag before we go to bed, ready for the following morning. I learnt planning, hard work, taking responsibility for my action, etc while growing up. When things were not entirely good with finances, we were thought to be content, to be resilient and cope well in tough times. I remember clearly my mum repeating to us – tough times never last, tough people do.Am I thankful to God for my parents and upbringing or what?
Do not blame me then if I find it nerve breaking to see people who do not know how to plan a small meeting for the team or people who sulk when things don’t seem to go their way in the office. I find myself having to teach people the process of organizing a small meeting (I honestly thought this should come naturally but the more ‘fresh blood’ we hire; my heart continues to bleed for the future of our nation). I basically have to run through this every time there is a meeting! People do not take responsibility for their actions; it’s the manager’s problem. Think of that colleague that consistently arrives the office late; the one that sulks just because he was reprimanded by his boss, the one that throws tantrums just because his idea was not accepted, the list goes on.
Parents have left their roles to be played by teachers (who in most cases are not happy about their salaries and are not exactly bothered especially as long as the child passes the exam; besides they have their own wards to deal with). This lack of ‘home training’ has now extended to the corporate organizations causing a significant increase in training cost and time spent on settling the ‘chicken’ quarrels (allow me please) and managing the ‘sulking baby’, etc. This is - not strangely – extended to the whole society (Imagine law makers fighting at a public meeting – I wonder what lesson their wards got to learn from their fathers tearing each other’s clothes on national TV!).
Parents have missed it. They are more focused on attaining that financial/career status than they are of BUILDING their families. Way back in primary school, we were thought that the family is the basic unit of the society. If the society is corrupt, then there is only one place to point fingers – the family! We may complain all we like about our deteriorating and corrupt society, but until we all take responsibility for building our homes and children, our nation will continually stray far from the road to recovery.
Parents (not teachers/TV/Internet/movies/etc), teach your child the way he should grow and when he grows old, he will not depart from it. If a child (or an adult at that) faults in the society, I dare say the parent did not do a good job! Parents! Our nation is in your hands. It’s your responsibility to groom the future of our nation. Are you wanting in parenting (and I do not mean paying the school fees alone. It requires spending time to inculcate values into the child)? A better nation lies within our families.
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