Special Edition: Building A Nation Of Responsible Parents

Let's Start the Revolution of the Filipino Youth XIX

I take this as a special article on the 12th Little Thing in Alexander L. Lacson's book "12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country," which states "Be a good parent. Teach your kids to follow the law and love our country." I am not yet a parent myself but I do believe that my parents play an important and larger role in my development as a human being, as a Filipino citizen. It is often said that the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree meaning to say that we usually are our parents' children because in so many ways we are much like them - we act like them, we behave like them, and alot of our beliefs and decisions in life are influenced by them.

On one of my articles before, I wrote about Building a Culture of Educators in the country. I believe that the foundation starts from how our parents nurtured and molded us when we were still young and sometimes, even when we're already grown ups. If a parent or our parents did not give importance to our education, then it usually is that we are also indifferent to the role that education plays in a person's life.

In Building a Nation of Responsible Parents, our government should become a great example of how a responsible parents acts, cares or nurtures. Our president, as head of the government and the state, must show how it is to be responsible. Early in school, and later in college, the system and our teachers should give emphasis on the important role that students as future parents later on should learn and understand.

Responsible parents will ulimately lead to more likely responsible children as well and the cycle continues. Though it is not always an assurance that being a responsible parent will result to a better and also responsible child, there is clearly no way of knowing if you don't try. The chances are better if you have developed yourself as a more responsible father or mother. In Building A Nation, families are the basic units, and with responsible parents, a nation can build better leaders that will be responsible citizens of society.

Here are 7 Things to Remember:

1. Be Active in your children's Education. Learn with them.

2. Read on books about responsible parenthood practices. It is not embarrassing to read a book that tackles the challenging tasks of parenthood.

3. Do as the Israelis do. Reinforce your child's worth early on in his or her life. Make them understand that failures and mistakes serve important lessons that can be useful later in life.

4. Teach them to follow the law and love our country.

5. Encourage them to read and write.

6. Treat them as adults. Take the time to explain certain things. Be honest about your answers to their curious minds.

7. Teach them Good Habits.

In the final analysis, responsible parents create a great society. And it is all the more challenging for our country who has over 8 million parents who are working abroad away from their families here.

"Today's children will someday rule and lead this world. But whether they will be bad rules or good leaders, will depend largely on how we raise them today." Alex L. Lacson, author "12 Little Things Every Filipino Can Do To Help Our Country"

Let us all be responsible parents to our children, younger siblings, friends, co-workers, and others.

(I am dedicating this article to my sister who is expecting her first child in November of this year 2007.)