As the Founder of Dreams for Kids, in the last twenty years I have seen parental pressure on kids increase each year. Recently we are seeing a shift, as our global economic conditions have shed light on our priorities and caused a reassessment of what is most important. We all want what is best for our children. It is instinctive. However, when we impose our will upon children to reach a level of achievement without regard to authentic connection among peers and contribution to society, we fail our children greatly.
Children are born with an unlimited capacity for creativity and compassion. When governance rather than guidance limits either, we have done them a great disservice. This generation of young people was born to lead and to lead lives of contribution. The future will look nothing like it does today. We must always remember that future belongs to our children. It is their creativity and humanity which will overcome the global issues of our time.
One of the most powerful gifts we can give our children is the gift of choice. If we spend consistent quality time with our kids, they will feel safe, secure, and confident. In this space, they will share their feelings with us and we can share our encouragement. Childhood, and hopefully all of our lives, is about exploration and discovery. As we make choices along the way, there is no right or wrong if we are guided by our values and principles which have been instilled in us by the example of those in our world.
All too often, parents relive their past with their children. They do not want them to make the mistakes they made and do not want them to suffer, when in fact it is when we fail that we learn the most enduring lessons which shape our character. Our children cannot relive our lives, anymore than we can. Within each of them is the capacity to dream and live the life that they have imagined. Along the way, the pendulum of life will swing in both directions and with it there will be successes and failures, exhilarating times and challenging times. Instinctively, with our love and listening as their support, they will chart a course which will bring fulfillment and joy. Chances are their life will look very different than ours, just as the future world will look vastly different than it does now.
It may seem contradictory; however, as we endure an economic meltdown which leaves the future less secure, this generation of youth is more concerned for the prosperity of their neighbors, both near and far, than any generation that preceded it. Our children will earn their place in the future and they are destined to do so by living lives which are balanced by service.
Let us give our children the space to choose their path and to live abundant lives of shared prosperity- and let’s be grateful they will lead us to a new world.