My wife is incredible. She is very
people oriented, hates wickedness, remembers names well, among other
things. Lately, she's been wanting me to have a talk with the
children after I discipline them. Sometimes it's being grounded on
this property, or in the house, or even in their room for a day.
It might be having to stand in one
place for ten minutes, write something ten times, or some other
punishment. I've always been of the mind that you can be angry at me,
I'll let that slide, but there are certain rules which are non
negotiable. She wants me to change that with these talks.
My earlier life was a lot coarser than
hers, I haven't developed the social skills she has; so I rely on and
trust her judgment in matters like these. I thought I'd be at a loss
for what to say, but I did OK. I present this for others who may feel
awkward in that situation.
It has been about a week since it
happened, I don't remember the details, so this is approximate.
The boy was caught taking something
which he didn't ask for. I sat next to him on the couch and said:
We don't like you to get in trouble,
but sometimes that's the only way to make children remember what we
expect. We need to teach you to be less selfish. A lot of the bad
things people do to each other is because they care more about
themselves than other people.
If you keep doing these selfish
things, that will be who you are, it will be your identity. You can
pretend to be something else, but it's just a big act. It's like a
jar of pickles. The label on the outside can say Kluasen, Del Monte,
or Kroger brand, but inside it's still pickles. Quite a long time
ago, there was a lady that felt sorry for all the wounded war
soldiers. They didn't have many people to help care for them. So she
started taking care of them, and getting other people to help.
Do you think that people remember her
for what her hair looked like? Or what kind of dresses she wore? Or
do you think they remember her as that nice lady the helped the
soldiers when they were hurting? You're right, they do, they remember her
as Clara Barton, the lady that started the Red Cross.
So go on now, and think about what
kind of boy you're making yourself into.
