How to teach children kindness and acceptance of otherness? #3

 

When you became a mother yourself, did you talk to your sons about being kind, or did you prefer to carefully correct their behavior?

Both. Raising children is like growing plants. You water it, expose it to the sun, make sure that it is properly maintained and does not grow crookedly. It's a matter of regularity and vigilance, but I'm just lucky because my sons are very good children. The younger one has innate social skills that make everyone want to hang out with him because he's just cool. In turn, the elder has always been a very good, albeit a little serious boy. For people like him, going to high school is stressful. One day, a neighbor, his friend's mother, advised me to "moderate" him a little, then he would not become so gentle. I thought that if something changed, it would be the behavior of her sneaky son (laughs). It's crazy that people think we have to be rude to survive.



But at the same time, we all worship the memory of heroes.

It's amazing that people find the strength to help others in the face of their own death. They have the courage to take the risk because they know it's the only right thing to do. For me, this behavior has everything that includes goodness, namely empathy, tolerance, and kindness. During the war, we call this attitude heroism, but we forget that we also need such heroism on a daily basis. Especially now, when extreme manifestations of polarization and hatred are taking place in many countries, when the president and the US government believe that only harassment, insults and abuse make sense and produce results. When goodness is naive and weak. Today, being kind requires courage, because instinct tells us an easier and safer way to take care of ourselves. Doing something for others takes effort. But it's worth it.



How to show children what it's worth to be good?

Today, this can be done in various ways, for example, to adopt a dog or to participate in tree planting. Such actions also include participation in marches and protests in solidarity with the defeated. I think it's important to show the kids what you're fighting for. And always resist evil, prove that good is stronger. Sometimes this means that you can't come up with a head, because in the end, deeds bear witness to us the most.



R.J. Palacio (aka Raquel Jaramillo), writer and illustrator.Her debut novel, Wonderful Boy (published by Albatros), has been published in 45 countries and has sold over 6 million copies. A movie starring Julia Roberts and Owen Wilson was made based on it. 1xbet 무료 프로모션 코드