A learning from long ago

We are about to move to another house in a few days from now. As part of the moving, there was a lot of cleaning and gathering of things that we should bring to the new house. This is why I stumbled into this old poem that I wrote on my diary in high school. As I read each line of this poem, it came to my mind that the reason why I wrote this in that diary long ago was because my mom and I were on some sort of misunderstanding. I, being the hard-headed teen I was then, would like to somehow give this poem to her as a part of my mother's day gift but I never had the courage. reading the poem now gives me more insights on being a mom and how I should handle all my little Jian's mischievousness at times. I'm writing this down right now, so as to share the lovely verses that was written by Kahlil Gibran.

On Children
An excerpt from "The Prophet" by Kahlil Gibran

And a woman who held a babe against her bosom said,
"Speak to us of Children".And he said:

Your children are not your children,

They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.

They come through you but are 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 nor tarries with yesterday.

You are the bows from which your chilren

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 th earcher's hand be for gladness;

For even as He loves the arrow that flies,

So he loves also the bow that is stable.

As I was growing I have always been given rules to follow. I grew up in house that kids are not given the chance to speak their mind out. My parents,having been bought by their disciplinarian parents, have always believed that in raising a child one has to be stiff and should always imposed punishment for broken rules. Yes, napapalo po ako nun dahil sa katigasan ng ulo ko. I have always been in some sort of argument with my Mama, especially during my teenaged years. I have always been the kind who would always stood for what I believed is right even if it means that I will be alone in my beliefs and would have to contest that of my parents understanding. Blame it on my Papa who, during my elementary days, made me realized that in order for others to respect you as a person you have to be true to what you have promised. Now that I am mother to a very smart boy, I begin to understanding the feelings of my Mama then while we are growing up. I am actually, at times. sounding like her. I guess I should have to be reminded as well that children are born with their own mind. The reason why they have to be with us is because they need our guidance as their parents.