Picture this, you are in your 30s, enjoying your busy working life, when your 10 year-old son got bullied by his friends, AGAIN, for the 5th time this week now just because he isn’t strong enough to defend himself. You are faced with several rational choices, console him, AGAIN, or, you could force him to face his fears by confronting his bullies and if not, punish him.
Sounds tough for a 10 year old, I know. But think about it, if consoling or counselling him is not going to work anymore. So, why not push him to defend himself?
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, this is my issue, when the going gets tough, the tough gets going. You see, Cinderella probably got tired being pushed around by her evil stepmother and sisters and so she disobeyed their orders and went to the ball anyways. Huuh, she finally became woman enough to fight for what she deserves. Rapunzel definitely got tired being pushed around that she fled her tower to find true love. Fa Mulan took her father’s place in the army when the situation got tough and became China’s hero.
The point is, we know for a fact that people, respectable ones of course, toughen up themselves when the situation gets ugly. So, what am I asking today is can we create tough lessons, tough situations for tomorrow’s leaders so that the world becomes a better and tougher place? Are we supposed to?
You see, Amy Chua, Law Professor at Yale Law School a.k.a Tiger Mom argues that Western parenting tries to respect and nurture children’s individuality, while Chinese parents typically believe that arming children with skills, strong work habits, and inner confidence prepares them best for the future. Her children are never allowed to watch TV, play computer games or go to sleepovers. While Sophia, Amy’s first-born practises, she looms over the piano saying encouraging things like: “If the next time’s not perfect, I’m going to take all your stuffed animals and burn them.”
In her book, “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother”, she wrote and I quote, “Chinese mothers can say to their daughters, "Hey fatty-lose some weight." By contrast, Western parents have to tiptoe around the issue, talking in terms of "health" and never ever mentioning the f-word, and their kids still end up in therapy for eating disorders and negative self-image." End of quote. To prove her point, Amy Chua’s daughter, Sophia has been accepted by both Harvard and Yale.
People, sooner or later, it will be our turn to raise leaders of the future. So it seems right to question, are we strong enough to build tough children so that they get going? I suggest that we never let our guards down, not only for a better today, not only for a better tomorrow, but for a better society, as a whole!!! THANK YOU~
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