2016-06-30
On Beliefnet's parenting board, member joekidd started a discussion on the joys and responsibilities of parenting that resembles a poem in blank verse. Read the poem, and add your thoughts to the discussion.

What about telling your kid that if you could pick any kid from a catalog of children,
it would be him or her?
tell your kid that you just can't wait till tomorrow
because they get cuter every day.
i don't believe children are born bad.
too many parents are caught up in the belief that they love their kids, and love becomes a word.
what do you actually do when you love your kids?
i believe parents love their children when they do 3 things:
protect
nourish
teach
that's what love does.
that's all they ever need.
don't complicate it.
don't burden them with your baggage.
don't ask them "why" they did something.
when you do something wrong, do you know why you did it?
don't force them to think they are dumb.
don't ever say "always" or "never" because it just makes you wrong and unworthy of respect.
children are innocent, they don't have evil agendas.
shelter them from media pollution designed to turn them into robotic consumers.
encourage them to read and write, to see things in ways that others don't get, and compliment them when they excel.
don't drink or smoke in their presence.
don't fight with or undercut the decisions of your spouse.
sing together loudly.
life is short,
but the future is what YOU make it.

please do your best always to raise great human beings. our kids need good people to hang out with.
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