It’s Not Your Life!

As a loving parent to your young child,
you should guide them to help achieve the goal
of their choosing, taking care all the while
to allow their dreams for life to unfold.

Often a parent sees another chance
for now obtaining unfulfilled success
of their own childhood dreams perchance
if the child can be forced to acquiesce.

Many a child, eager to please the parent,
will strive to live up to expectations
which for them are ill-suited and errant.
You must allow children their own aspirations.

A child’s personal happiness doesn’t reside in
playing football if he’d much rather dance
or going to medical or law school when
she’d rather as an artist take her chance.

It’s okay when a child’s talent and goals
happen to match the parent’s own to urge
that agenda for their life, but if it unfolds
as unwise, then their life’s path must diverge.

A parent should steer, teach how to best cope
for adult success and how to live well.
That they will share your values you can hope;
you must encourage, not try to compel.

Each child should live a childhood beguiled.
Remember the life isn’t yours but the child’s.


Please check out my ten books:
http://www.amazon.com/Jr.-Harry-E.-Gilleland/e/B004SVLY02/ref=ntt_dp_epwbk_0