Our Children, Our Future - 9. Swami Chinmayananda

17/02/2017.

1.
Only when a plant is young and we are sincerely watching it, we can train the plant to grow straight. A plant can be trained but not a tree. If the tree has got a bend, it has got a bend – full stop! Then we can only trim the branches but not the trunk.

Similarly, training of our children can only be done between the ages of 6 to 12, between ages 12 to 18 also can be done to an extent, but after 18 the tree has become set and one will have to go through fire in order to become hot and plastic enough to change.

Once we have gone beyond the younger ages, it is not so easy to change our pattern of thoughts, our angle of vision, our attitude to things and beings. So early childhood is the time for training and mothers are mainly responsible.

2.
The father can only come into the house like a storm in the evening, beaten out and wounded, angry with the world. He wants to explode somewhere or other but he dare not at the office; so if the children are in front of him they are the victims.

But the mother cautions them saying ” Get out and play It is coming!”. She herself receives his anger with a smile or just stands silently, two tears running down her cheeks. Then perhaps a neighbour comes to borrow sugar, the father is in bad temper and yells “What do you want!” The mother, however, slips to the back door and secretly gives the lady the up of sugar she needs.

To be continued ...