“Step gracefully and confidently forward knowing that you and your dreams are always intact, no matter which way the world may go.” Self esteem and confidence are inextricably mixed. If you have no confidence you have no self esteem, and visa-versa. It is a huge problem in today’s society, especially with our youth. In the land TV, video games, and hours and hours of academic “homework” our children have no time (or desire) to develop those skills that build confidence and therefore self esteem. There is already a great lack of respect and lack of values growing in today’s youth. It is no surprise that a lack of self esteem would segue into a lack of self value. This becomes a deadly downward spiral that leads to things such as food disorders, self mutilation (cutting) and ultimately suicide. In this environment all it takes is one bad word to stifle a dream forever. Then what do we have… a youth without even a dream! Hopelessness sets in very quickly. What our youth lack (and some of us that are more mature) is the wisdom to know that NO ONE can kill YOUR dreams! So, we must teach; yes, others may scorn you, insult you, judge you for dreams, but they can NEVER kill your dream. Oh, they think they can, and they will try, but at the end of the day only YOU can kill your dreams. In knowing that, your dream can remain intact and you can be confident of that… and if you can be confident, you CAN have self esteem, and if you can have self esteem you can and will have VALUE… AND IF YOU CAN HAVE VALUE… then you can have a BLESSED LIFE. I for one think you can do and be ANYTHING. I think your dreams are beautiful and I’m willin’ and waitin’ to go dancing on the Dragon’s back! Bright blessings ~ Richard
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Its fantastic.
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very cool... excellent day for golfing. Here anyway... hope its the same for you.
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I've thought about this often, I have a teenage son and a daughter that will be a teenager next year. I've tried my absolute best to teach them to not only respect others, but to also respect themselves, I really believe that our self esteem is tied into our self respect. I've never thought about their dreams being tied to their self worth, but that makes a lot of sense. I have supported them in their dreams though, even if the dreams didn't seem practical to me, because I know what it is like to have dreams and no support. I also know that dreams change. Parenting is such a balancing act and the way things are in our society doesn't make it any easier.
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Yes, parenting is quite challenging sometimes. I've recently been amazed at how few class there are to help parents. Especially those with troubled teens. :( But we'll get through it, and succeed. I love what Gibran writes of Children in The Prophet: "Your children are not your children. They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself. They come through you but not from you, And though they are with you yet they belong not to you. You may give them your love but not your thoughts, For they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodies but not their souls, For their souls dwell in the house of to- morrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams. You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you. For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday. You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth. The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far. Let your bending in the archer's hand be for gladness; For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable. Bright blessings ~ Richard