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Sunday, June 19, 2005
Lusabia: The rights of children (First part)
By Sister Clarissa Lusabia
Omega and Alpha
WHO cares about children? Well, I do. Children are close to the heart of Jesus because they stand for utter simplicity. Jesus says, "Such is the kingdom of heaven." Children speak the truth. "Out of the mouths of babes..." is an adage.
After writing about senior citizens, I am writing about children. No one can debate the fact that I did grow out of a child. Yes, siree, you think I can qualify as a writer on that subject? You bet!
A while ago I wrote about June brides and marriage. The result of both are children. As we relish our children and children of others who are our relatives and friends, we must be aware that these children are not our own. They are God's children. And according to Kahlil Gibran, a spiritual writer, parents are only their caretakers, their nannies or "yayas" and "yayos".
With this in mind, we must be aware of our duties as caretakers of God's children. We need to feed our child nutritious foods as well as nurture and educate them. We nourish them with our love, but we must discipline them the proper way. We have to let them grow in God's good grace, allow them to honor us, and they should be able to differentiate between the parent and the child.
In today's age we do not know who the parent is and who the child is. In myriad stores and restaurants in our city, children dictate their parents and one just wonders who is older and wiser. Parents ask, "Why are children today different from the children of yesteryears?"
They are what you make them. If you allow them a little 'L' (or length for allowance), they will ride you to hell. Thank God, there are still good children who honor and respect their parents and obey house rules. Thank God for children who still "bring the ham and bacon" to their families. Thank God for God-loving and God-fearing children.
Some children do whatever they like. They play cyber games and pollute the environment with noise. They give boisterous laughter all day long and they 'think' they are happy. They pose several problems to their parents and they think they are 'challenging' and actually...they are!
They come home from parties at three o'clock in the morning instead of ten o'clock in the evening as agreed in the family meeting. The play the CDs because it is vogue. They watch TV till almost 11 p.m. because they think they are watching the models. They want to study after, not before, TV time. They sleep till late in the morning because they think they are growing.
And wow! After a late night's sleep, their appetite is back! They can devour a whole elephant! Ma wonders where all the sausages went. And where have all the nilaga gone? And all the bananas and ripe mangoes and rice? The tsunami or bulimia has set in. No, it has not licked the youngsters. It is a deluge! Ma can not take it, this food trip! This unusual binge!
But it is legal, moral, and normal. At least it's not drugs, liquor, cigarette, opposite sex, thievery...name it, you have it.
Parents must know where their children are, with whom and where. Must children also know where their parents went? With whom? And where?
(June 19, 2005 issue)
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