THE MATURE KID

Not many will disagree that most beautiful are the nostalgic feelings of your childhood. Exciting mornings, fun time in the school bus, classroom pranks, impatience for lunch and exuberance that marked the end of every school day provide with memories which cannot be effaced. And obviously we hate to efface them. And thats why there are times you find yourself wishing badly you could get back to those days.

The funniest part of childhood is the self-proclaimed and self-conceived maturity. A guy of five thinks he is mature enough to handle the world and manage people around him. And when he turns six, quite comically he believes he was a child at five but now has turned into a smart old man.

But even more comic is the observation that these kids are at times indeed quite sensible and mature. Children can be made to behave more responsibly and pragmatically if their thoughts are listened to and their opinions appreciated. We often underestimate children and ignore their latent and potential maturity. There are times when children in a family make irresponsible and inordinate demands. Inspite of the guardian's inability to fulfill their demands and live upto their expectations, the guardian (father in most cases) refrains from discussing the matter openly with his children. This underestimation of the child's ability to recognise and appreciate his father's abilties or rather inabilties to live upto his expectations quite often puts rather avoidable burden on the father's shoulders and makes father's life traumatic.Though this might possibly put child's innocent dreams and pious emotions into peril, the discussion properly done not only can solve family's financial problems, but also can prove phenomenal in inculcating responsibility and foresight into the children's character.

But again its the responsibilty of the parents to make sure they don't spoil the fun part of the childhood of their wards. Because its the fancy and the fantasy which enables a person make his childhood cherishable and memorable.

HUMILITY
this is a stolen poem. i m putting it here coz the inherent modesty of this poem has touched me.

I have no voice for singing
I cannot make a speech
Ihave no gift for music,
I know I cannot teach,

I am no good at leading
I cannot organize
And anything I write,
Would never win a prize.

But at the roll call in the meetings
I always answer, "Here,"
When others are performing
I lend a listening ear.

After the program's over
I praise its every part,
My words are not to flatter,
I mean them from my heart.

It seems my only talent
Is neither big nor rare-
Just to listen and encourage
And to fill a vacant chair.

But all the gifted people
Could not so brightly shine,
Were it not for those who use
A talent such as mine.

~Alice Bennett