Sound Advice to Children
If I had children, I would advise them, first and foremost, to obey the words of God. To obey the words of God is an all-encompassing piece of advice that presupposes belief in the Supreme Being. It is only by having faith in the existence of God and by obeying His words, I believe, that our conscience can be programmed with the right set of instructions that will guide us in the right way of living life. Without this belief and obedience to God, children will grow up and end up miserable, the forces of deceitful worldly pleasures taking over their lives. Without belief in God and the knowledge that there is judgment–that we will be accountable for everything that we do in this present life–children will grow up as slaves of every temptation, rather than as masters of them, for this world is full of enticing glitters of gold, of drunkenness, and of every ephemeral sinful pleasures. Ethics and good manners alone provide no shield against the slings and arrows of the lusts of the eyes, of our destructive inner cravings, of the pride and mundane affairs of this life. Worse, children will be reduced to warring savages, and when fully grown, to dangerous untamed machines destroying their fellow human beings. Without God’s rules and instructions imbedded in their hearts, children will be cheating and doing every conceivable evil thing whether or not anyone sees them, and will not even realize that they are doing wicked things.
Second to that spiritual advice concerns the physical and mental well-being of my children. I would advise them to be physically and mentally fit: Exercise regularly and take only food and medicine beneficial to health. Avoid junk foods, do not smoke, do not stay awake late at night doing things of no importance. Engage in worthwhile discussion of great ideas, read voraciously, learn foreign languages, acquire great knowledge, learn every good thing that can be learned under the sun, rev up their brain cells, sharpen their wits, switch their awareness to higher gears. Do not walk the walk of fools, neither be phlegmatic. For only by keeping themselves active, physically and intellectually fit, and abreast of the times, can they be able to efficiently perform their duties and responsibilities.
My third advice is to think positively in every situation. The world is not always roses and chocolates. Most of the time it is full of weeds, of thorns and thistles, of frustrations, of pains and bitterness. Life abounds with miseries, but amid all these, I would advise my children, to look beyond the tempest and dark clouds, to hope for the brighter days to come. Adversities are inevitable, but they cannot put a good man down for a long time. Adversities must be taken as challenges, so set eyes on the glory of surmounting them.
Every day of our lives we face the task of choosing one from among many choices. We tend to chose that which we believe will give us happiness in the end. Friends, companions, good marriage, good health, work, security, knowledge and wisdom, realization of dreams, self-actualization—these are considered as the building blocks of happiness which we all strive for to attain. In as much as these are the goals of attaining a happy life, I would give my children this fourth advice: Choose wisely. Choose good friends, opt for excellent companions. Make a matured choice of a good wife or husband. Pick only good books to read. Choose the line of work where they would excel, choose that which they love doing for the rest of their lives. Choose good name over sparkling riches gained through dishonest means. Choose the right information, knowledge, and wisdom, or philosophy that will set the right course for their lives. Choose what is good, fair, and just, that they may not regret it in the end. I would remind them that if they opt for mediocrity or for the wrong choice, they will suffer the consequences—consequences which may not only be terrible but may also spell the gloomy days of their future.
The fifth advice on the list concerns time, energy, and financial management: Do not waste time, money, and energy. I would advise my children not to spend time worrying about the future or indulging in vices, laziness, or trivial pursuits, for these lead nowhere but to poverty. If they have excess money, I would suggest saving it or giving it to the poor. They should manage and control their time, money, and energy, otherwise these might control them.
Unless I myself practice what I preach, these five best pieces of advice would by no means be taken seriously by my children. Children are great imitators and judges. Therefore, I myself should be God-fearing, physically and mentally fit, a positive thinker choosing wisely and managing time, money, or energy efficiently, in order to convince them to heed my advice.
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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