There is no need to be mean

This is for those parents who think their kids should face hardships just because they did too. This too is also directed to the guardians who frustrate their kids by denying them even the simplest of things whether necessary or not. Some of those parents are simply mean but others believe that it is the best way to raise a kid. Forgive me but that is just being ‘old school’. Walking thirty kilometers to school without shoes or being sent to boarding school without bed sheets or sugar might have been normal in the 70’s but things have changed and it is just unacceptable in this era. A child whose parents cannot afford most things should be patient and actually use that as a challenge to study harder and save the family from such despair. However, the parents who can actually afford these necessities but choose not to buy them are actually taking a risk and exposing their kids to theft, prostitution or anything that will get them some money. An old friend from high school called Bush once said, “Given the chance, I can get rid of daddy and share the property with my mum.” It was a stupid and very wrong thing to say. He was bitter with his dad because the guy was so mean and never bought him anything.It reminds me of one of Africa’s most esteemed evangelists Bishop Festo Kivengeri’s inspirational talks.He said, “Jesus said, let the kids come to me… the best way to know what a kid wants is by talking to him with love and the best way to tell the kid what you want is by talking to him with love.”The Ugandan evangelist did not mean, spoiling a kid with money and all the unnecessary brat treatment. A child will know that even though you are unable to buy some of the things you need, the love in your voice says you pray that someday you will.Twenty years after his death, his message is still with us; the message of love and good treatment as opposed to unreasonably rude conduct.