The Warm Hearted Family : หน้า 67/207 Guide parents on how to be effective role models for their children by maintaining good qualities and adhering to moral principles.
Be a good role model for
the children to observe
The first factor is the most difficult because many parents
do not realize how influential they are to their children. Before
we can begin to be good role models, we need to take stock of
our good qualities. The Lord Buddha gave us the Five Precepts
as an instrument to measure the worthiness of a human being.
In today's society many people cannot even maintain the Five
Precepts, so how can we be good role models for our children?
If parents come to the conclusion that their children are
not as good as they could be, the parents must reflect upon
where that bad behavior came from. Children are like clean
slates, most of them do not know what is correct. When
children speak impolitely, it is because they remembered it
from their parents. If we want to train our children to be good
people, their parents must create a good moral foundation by
teaching them the Five Precepts, and maintaining those
precepts to be good role models.
But in the present day we say, "If you love your cows, tie
them. If you love your children, spend time with them."
Since children read books, we should take great care in
selecting them. If they want to read comics or biology, we
must read along with them. One problem that we see today is
violent video and computer games. We must be vigilant and
spend time with our children. We must give them love and
affection.
If we say that we do not have the time, then our lives are
only half-lived. Our lives were not meant only for working; we
must have time for ourselves and our family. We must set
aside time to go to the book store with our children, let them
select their own books, and observe their behavior from a
distance. Sometimes we have to provide them with information
to help in the decision-making process. As they grow older
your lessons will help them select only good books.
Find good books for the children to read
Our ancestors used to say, "If you love your cows, you
must tie them. If you love your children; you must spank them."
Find a good teacher to teach the children
The subject of teachers is an extremely important one
because they are the strongest outside influences that promote
virtues in children. Since we are not with the teachers at school
all day, we need to be able to assess them. We do not
necessarily need a world-renowned school for our children
The Warm Hearted Family
132
Raising Our Children to be Good People
The Warm Hearted Family
133
Raising Our Children to be Good People