Train up a child in the way he should grow, and when he is older, he won't depart from it. This is one of the Bible scriptures I have come to love. Growing up as a kid, I have learned so much from my parents, so much I am grateful for, and so much I would like to give back to my children if given the chance.
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While growing up, there was one thing that my parents made sure all their kids learned, and that was contentment and proactiveness. The reason we see young boys going into crime and ladies going into prostitution is because they are not grateful for the little they have and they want more. Many individuals are influenced by the lifestyles of others, which often motivates them to go to great lengths to achieve a similar way of life.
I have come to learn and understand that, in this world, we can't always get what we want because the world was not created for everyone to be balanced. Some people are born to rule while others are born to follow, so wherever I find myself, I am always ready to make the best of it.
The world we live in today is a fast-growing one; some people call it the computer age because of how fast things are developing, which is the truth. If you want to move one step ahead of other people, then you need to be proactive. I remember my dad always saying, "There are thousands of people doing the same thing you do, and the only way to be ahead of them is to be proactive and be the best at what you do."
My dad always believes, "Whatever is worth doing, then it is worth doing well." If this is a local or professional job, you need to be proactive and ready to learn new things related to your job. So if I am going to replicate anything in my future kids, it would be contentment and proactiveness. If I could add one more thing, that would be eating together with my siblings from one plate. It really bound us together while we were growing.
Something I wouldn't want to repeat in my kids lives was the way my dad and mom beat me while I was growing up. I am sure many kids in Nigeria have had their share of this beating and flogging. No doubt, I was a little stubborn, but I believe some words of advice and encouragement would have helped me out a lot. My parents should be grateful to God for the way I turned out to be because I turned out to be a good and loving child who loves his parents.
I wouldn't want my kids to go through the same feeling I felt back then because it was horrible. I wouldn't want to replicate that in their lives. Sometimes I feel like I am hated, but that is not the truth. They love me and want the best for me, but there are other ways to show that.
Well, that's it for me. Thanks for reading my post. This is my entry for the Hivenaija weekly prom. I love you all, and I love my country.