Ninya Walters knows her time is limited but she has a few things to teach her son before he becomes a man.
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My Boy. I love him to pieces, from the first moment I laid eyes on the cleft in his chin, HE HAD ME. He makes me laugh, he cheers me up, he makes mistakes. We all do, right? The time it goes so fast. Almost 12 years have passed in a blink and I am seeing now more than ever, that my time with him, to teach him the things I want him to know is so limited. Soon enough, he will pull away from me and friends will become more important, he will begin to show symptoms of Know It All Syndrome. But I know this will be temporary, and eventually he will understand and come to appreciate why we raised him the way we did.
So what do I want to teach him in the short 6 years I have left?
- Respect yourself, women and other men.
- Work hard.
- Find something you are passionate about and make it your career.
- It’s ok to feel your feelings and show them in constructive ways.
- Be a friend.
- Have Integrity.
- Stand up for those who can’t stand for themselves.
- Everyone is valuable.
- Try not to judge yourself or others.
- Be Grateful.
- Cleaning up after yourself is an important life skill.
- Learn to cook real food with real ingredients. Chemicals will kill you.
- Use things not people.
- Worrying steals more joy from your life than anything else ever will.
- Money is only a tool that gives you freedom.
- Loyalty and honesty are honorable and important.
- You can choose to be HAPPY. Every. Single. Day.
- Video games are fun, they serve their purpose, but don’t let electronics control your life.
- Be Productive and Creative.
- Listen to your heart in all things. It knows if something is good for you or not.
No matter what you do, no matter what mistakes you make, I will always love you. I may not understand your choices, but they are yours to make. This is your one life that YOU get to live.
Photo: Flickr/Familymwr
Originally appeared at Photoshop for Moms
wonderful article and story. my husband and I have daughters and we worry about boys today versus boys in our generation. They seem more concerned about texting, video games and getting into a girls pants. We have told our girls that when a boy shows interest, they need to ask themselves a few things: 1. Does he look at you when your speaking, does he listen? 2. Does he live his life with respect for all people, with integrity and with consideration for women? 3. Does he respect and honor his parents? 4. Does he work hard, study and work… Read more »
1. 1. Does he look at you when your speaking, does he listen? Do they care for his opinions or struggles? 2. Does he live his life with respect for all people, with integrity and with consideration for women? Do your daughters consider the lives of men laid down to provide, build and maintain the society they benefit from? 3. Does he respect and honor his parents? Do your daughters? 4. Does he work hard, study and work hard at school, does he know how to fix simple things like faucets and flat tires? Do your daughters expect to work… Read more »
Joshua I agree, the above is a good list but I also instantly saw sexism.
Annette, with some tweaks your list could apply to all children in this modern age of being self centred and sexual (or otherwise) objectification. If we teach our kids well there is less to fear for the future 🙂
Nice Ninya. These will surely stand your son in good stead through his life. My list would be very similar. Thank you.
I loved reading this. It reminded me of one of my favorite personal improvement/leadership I have ever come across from a book John Wooden co-authored with Steve Jamison titled, “Wooden: A Lifetime of Observations On and Off the Court”. On it’s surface this might seem like just some generic basketball coach giving generic advice about how to be a “winner” and nothing he recommends in the book is rocket science or revolutionary but the advice given is coming from a ruthlessly consistent peak performer – not just some dude who had one or two good years coaching and won a… Read more »
Very good advice indeed, but I tend to be pessimistic about you having 6 years left. The big character-building phase of your son is already over. Basically he now is what he will be. So if you already brought him up with those good principles, the major work is already done.
Thank God, I like who he is already! Still work to do. Always work to do. Thanks for reading!
Ninya,
This is powerful, I cannot express my gratitude of your words. There seems to be clarity and comfort, which is exactly what all men should learn from ther mothers.
Please give my best to your brother Matt, he was a trooper when others were not so kind on the schoolbus.