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 thougts,
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 nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
The Archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with
His might that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the Archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable.
Take a moment to listen today
to what your children are trying to say,
Listen to them, whatever you do
or they won’t be there to listen to you.
Listen to their problems, listen to their needs
Praise their smallest triumphs, praise their littlest deeds;
Tolerate their chatter, amplify their laughter,
Find out what’s the matter, find out what they’re after.
If we tell our children all the bad in them we see,
They’ll grow up exactly how we hoped they’d never be;
But if we tell our children we’re so proud to wear their name,
They’ll grow up believing that they’re winners in the game.
Take a moment to listen today to what
your children are trying to say
Listen to them whatever you do, and
They’ll be there to listen to you.
So tell them that you love them every single night;
And though you scold them make sure you hold them
and tell them they’re all right, “Good night, happy dreams,
Tomorrow’s looking bright.”
Brainy Facts 