Parenting Mistakes

The following Poem should be read and read again by all parents. It sums up on one page the biggest mistake any parent can make. This is probably one of the biggest causes of lack of Self esteem in young People today!. Yet is the most avoidable of sitautions.... 

I ran into a stranger as he passed by,
Oh excuse me please" was my reply.
He said, "Please excuse me too;
Silly me, I wasn't watching for you."
We were very polite, this stranger and I.
We went on our way and we said good-bye.

But at home a different story is told,
How we treat our loved ones, young and old.

Later that day, cooking the evening meal,
My son stood beside me very still.
When I turned, I nearly knocked him down.
Move out of the way you stupid Idiot," I said with a frown.
As he walked away, his little heart broken.
I didn't realize how harshly I'd spoken.

That night while I lay awake in bed,
I heard a voice in my head,
"While dealing with a stranger, common courtesy you use,
but the children you love, you seem to abuse.
Go and look on the kitchen floor,
You'll find some flowers there by the door.
Those are the flowers he brought for you
He picked them himself: pink, yellow and blue.
He stood very quietly not to spoil the surprise,
you never saw the tears that filled his little eyes."

By this time, I felt very small,
And now my tears began to fall.
I quietly went and knelt by his bed;
"Wake up, little one, wake up," I said.
"Are these the flowers you picked for me?"
He smiled, "Yes Mummy I found 'em out by the tree
I picked 'em because they're so pretty, just like you.
I knew you'd like them, especially the blue."
I said, "Son, I'm very sorry for the way I acted today;
I shouldn't have yelled at you that way."
He said, "Oh, Mum, that's okay,
You know I still love you anyway."
I said, "Son, I love you too"
"and I do like the flowers, especially the blue."

Never Forget; Always treat people the way you would want them to treat you!. I just seems that we break this rule even more so when dealing with the people we love most. Especially children, and this is at a time when they are looking to us for inspiration and guidance.

The love and respect of your children is NOT a God given right. You have to earn this.

Whereas every child DOES HAVE THE RIGHT to expect the love of his / her Parents!.