A friend of mine sent this poem to me via an email. I’m sharing this poem to all parents and future parents who are reading this blog. Of course, credit for this poem goes to it’s original author. Here it goes.
If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn
If children live with hostility, they learn to fight
If children live with fear, they learn to be apprehensive
If children live with pity, they learn to feel sorry for themselves
If children live with ridicule, they learn to be shy
If children live with jealousy, they learn what envy is
If children live with shame, they learn to feel guilty
If children live with tolerance, they learn to be patient
If children live with encouragement, they learn to be confident
If children live with praise, they learn to appreciate
If children live with approval, they learn to like themselves
If children live with acceptance, they learn to find love in the world
If children live with recognition, they learn to have a goal
If children live with sharing, they learn to be generous
If children live with honesty and fairness, they learn what truth and justice are
If children live with security, they learn to have faith in themselves and in those around them
If children live with friendliness, they learn that the world is a nice place in which to live
If children live with serenity, they learn to have peace of mind.
What are your children living with?
I have this poem too.. A teacher gave it to me when I was about 8 yrs old. I still kept the original copy.. I believe the poem is true.. It’s easy to shape a child. We just have to do the right thing
I have read this poem about 15 years ago in our church’s Sunday School classroom. It teaches a set of valuable truth that if we, as parents, can practice then our children would develop more positive character traits in their life. I hope I can live by all these principles as I take care of our children.