Common Wish List.
· I pad
· I pod touch
· 3 DS
· Wii
· I phone
· New game CDs.
I am sure we all had our share of wish list already. Here
comes the holiday season with feelings of family fun time with anxiety of not
being able to fulfill our child’s every wish. If we are unable to fulfill, we can get a
probation time till their birthday!
We surely are not
the only parents with this emotional turmoil. Now my question or concern is
that, “Do our children value money?” Apparently they don’t. I would like to
cite an example here. My then 7 year old daughter had big gimmes at shopping
time. Mommy please buy this, it is just $ 20! Now that $20 is not just. Words
were not enough to explain her the situation. One day she saw a flyer at home
regarding newspaper career wanted in our area. She took my permission and
called the office. They were kind enough to give her that job provided I went
with her(Well of course). It was fall when she took the job. Each day was hard
as it rained heavily and snowed at times. She did that job for 3 months and
bought a 3DS with her own money. We were very proud of her and she realized the
importance and value of money. So my
concern is, If they continue to grow
being ungrateful, would they be able to make themselves lead a happy life?
When we point a finger towards anyone, three fingers are
towards us. I believe same thing applies in this case too. The bigger share of
blame goes on the part of us parent community. Technological advancement is so
rapid, that we ourselves are sometimes put in dilemma. We need to ask
ourselves, “Do I spend a quality time daily with my child?” and Is providing
money and latest gadgets going to make
my child a better human being? Some families have a routine of talking
with children at dinner table. For me, I feel comfortable when I go in her room
to do some casual chit chats or when we are doing some fun activities together
. I am sure all children adore that quality time .
Everything in moderation is good. Our teens and youths are
so addict to the technology . We also see a lot of examples of cyber bullying
etc. In this case, are they making correct use of the technology? At what level
do we need to interfere as parents or teachers or guardians? We recently had a
teen committing suicide due to cyber bullying. I believe that if we take a
lesson from that very unfortunate case, we might be able to help other
children. That says we need to bridge the gap between our children and us.
Now technology in itself is excellent. Just like medicine or
healthy food. I personally like electronic gadgets too. I love to chat all day
with my friends and family. Watching TV and looking to buy things online etc.
For children there are some excellent apps and some excellent websites good for
their development. Some standalone games like v-smile etc. are really educative
too. Now it is at our discretion to decide timings for our children.
I would like to conclude here. Technology is for our
betterment, provided we use it efficiently. I believe it’s time for us to
revise our child development practices.
We have to have a vigil over our lifestyles as well, to make sure we
raise versatile and grateful children. We should have a parent vs technology
time ratio pre-determined for our children from now on. What say ya?
