They say that Parenting is an art. It is the best gift that one can receive. From giving birth to a new life, growing them, helping them see the world, assisting them with every difficulty that they have, to seeing them as fully grown adults…Parenting can be a great experience of life.

Ever planted a tree? Right from sowing the seed, giving it water, nurturing it, seeing the first leaf, the flower, the fruit…the joy is incredible. As parents this is what you will experience when you see your child grow.

Here is a wonderful extract from The Prophet by Khalil Gibran:

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward not tarries with yesterday…

This passage tells a lot about parenting and since this is an art, I won’t say that there are strict Dos and Don’ts. Every parent will paint a different picture. However, there are guidelines which will help every parent to see and bring out the best in their kids.  

You don’t really understand human nature unless you know why a child on a merry-go-round will wave at his parents every time around – and why his parents will always wave back.  ~William D. Tammeus.