Children are indeed a blessing bestowed on lucky parents who at times marvel at the miracle of these perfect human replicas of themselves. The pitter patter of little feet has long been our motivation to work, excel and strive for new goals as each generation aims to advance and improve the lives of the next.
May/June being a celebration of children and family, Buzzz Magazine turns the spotlight on our little bundles of joy – our kids – one of the reasons we continue to be productive, exemplary citizens of this nation. Our children are our biggest assets, our greatest accomplishments and to many true parents, kids give an understanding of what real love is all about.
While the luxuries of life are good signs of worth, there is no better investment than having a child. The rewards are both tangible and intangible: you are the very first role model they try to emulate as soon as they can walk and talk – they are tottering around in your shoes or getting into your make-up as they want be just like Mommy and Daddy and that feeling is the kind of pride no MasterCard can buy.
The UN Declaration of the Rights of the Child states that they are entitled to benefits of social security; a name at birth; nationality; those physically handicapped shall be given special treatment; education; play and recreation as well as protection from neglect, cruelty and exploitation. Kids have to be nurtured and cared for lovingly in order to not only grow, but be released into the society like butterflies, ready to fly off and tackle all the challenges and hurdles of the world.
Women are definitely having less babies, and those born in the 21st century are living in the most indulgent era possible.
Remember when a ‘tablet’ was a pill that you crushed for children and then gave them in a spoonful of syrup to take away the bitterness? Well today we have tech tablets and apps for everything from monitoring your baby’s development and progress to sourcing the best caregivers in your neighbourhood.
Gone are the days of dresser drawers being used as bassinets; baby bed sheets made of flour bags; bird’s eye white cloth nappies and cute chemise tops that both little boys and girls wore. We no longer just drop off our children with the old lady down the road as now there are Montessori schools and speciality day care and crèches that cater to our children’s early cognitive development – just giving them pencils, paper and play dough is so 1985.
Occasionally when there was a black-out and our parents gave us a little more leeway we would be allowed to play hide and seek at night, tell duppy stories, play leap frog and make moonshine dollies.
Having a baby is a huge decision for most women. For Pauline Charlton*, having a baby was a hard decision as she was a crazy party girl who liked to drink, stay out late and live that lifestyle that was as far away from ‘Susie Homemaker’ as possible. “Back in my hey day, nuh party nuh miss me; nuh pool party or old clothes dance nuh happen and me nuh deh-deh so when I found out I was pregnant I seriously had to stop and think if I was ready for all that responsibility as I was only 24.
I considered a termination of the pregnancy but then I thought why punish a child for my own stupidity. I had to quickly shape up and get serious about life as it wasn’t about just me anymore – I couldn’t live selfishly. When Justin was born it was like an epiphany for me. This tiny bundle of joy became my whole new to understand that boys are just as much at risk for abuse as girls. Our society spends a lot of time looking out for our girls but fail to give our boys that same attention and care -that needs to be addressed with some urgency.”
Then you have the cases of missing children, the ones who simply disappear before or after school. There is possibly nothing quite as devastating as that sickening feeling in the pit of your stomach when your child is missing, even for a minute. It is therefore unimaginable what these parents experience. Based on statistics, last year some 1,730 children went missing between January and August, 10 of whom were eventually found deceased. What we do not know are the happy reunion stories.
For Child Advocate Diahann Gordon-Harrison it is not only about preventing child abuse but also as importantly child neglect and endangerment in the form of having very young children skip school to sell on the streets, including peddling late at night. She recently shared that there at times sporadic intervention methods including the removal of the children by police, they often reappear at another stoplight a few weeks later. “So, we are looking at very strategic community-based interventions.
We think sometimes when a child is at risk, community members can assist with saving that child or at least alerting the relevant agencies, then we can intervene and rescue her/him before the child actually reaches the street.
The support of community leaders and members will also help to reduce stigmatization once the children have returned home. Parents also need to be supported at home so that they can be better caregivers for their children; be able to supervise them more effectively, and in this way cauterise any inclination that the child may have to go on the street. They have to make the home a more nurturing environment.”
Some of the underlying factors that lead children to run away or take to the streets include: inadequate parenting skills; neglect or abuse; material deprivation; inadequate housing and inadequate family support; vast migration to urban centres; high levels of unemployment; weakening of the traditional family structure; parental disapproval of pregnancy or homosexuality and the inability to adjust to institutional rules in children’s homes or
other placements.
Those tragic stories are thankfully not the majority as most parents are not negligent or abusive and even when they don’t get it right the first time, great and fun learning is possible. Child rearing can seem like one is walking a fine line and for day care provider Paula Persaud, more parents need to just let children be themselves without adding stress and pressure. “Yes, we want them to be lawyers and doctors and engineers but sometimes our obsession with them getting into the right high school and the right university make us place undue pressure on them.
When they are young, let them be messy occasionally; let them make mistakes and just be
there to catch them when they fall. Every fall, cut or ‘boo-boo’ is a life lesson they are learning so we shouldn’t shield them from the simple hurts and realities of the world as they then won’t be equipped to deal with major problems as adults. They need to understand loss, failure, death, good sportsmanship, sharing, being a true friend and that their word is their bond. Top that off with good values, morals, manners and etiquette and you have done your job as a parent in equipping them to be good law abiding citizens of this nation.”
If Education Minister Ronald Thwaites had his way, child rearing would be this nation’s number one priority as he believes raising respectful human beings to be future law abiding citizens who are well adjusted and productive is the only way for this nation to have long term success. “We not only have to educate our children but educate them effectively the first time so that the limited resources available are not wasted. Our emphasis will initially be on early-childhood education so that we stop wasting billions of dollars annually on remedial education.We must do it right the first time. No child, no student whose parent and family cannot afford to pay for primary education should be denied.”
Nurturing our kids will inculcate positive values and promote the desire to achieve. When you speak to the average 7 to 12 year olds and ask them the age-old question of what they want to be when they become adults, their answers have certainly evolved from the days of aspiring to be teachers, firemen, nurses and policemen. Nowadays everybody wants to be a scientist, nuclear physicist, astronaut, mechanical engineer, architect, pop star, deejays and last but certainly not least, the next Usain Bolt!
Yes, many things about children have changed from one generation to the next but what has remains true is the fact that they need support, love and attention, regardless of their age, class, colour, ethnicity and educational or economic background. Beyond all the defiance, and modern obstructions, there still exist vulnerable human beings who seek your approval and acceptance in all their activities.
Never be too busy for them regardless of your work obligations – children need your presence, not presents: nurture them, protect them and guide them! Remember the Biblical guidance in Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he gets old he will not depart from it.”
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Children are indeed a blessing bestowed on lucky parents who at times marvel at the miracle of these perfect human replicas of themselves. The pitter patter of little feet has long been our motivation to work, excel and strive for new goals as each generation aims to advance and improve the lives of the next.
May/June being a celebration of children and family, Buzzz Magazine turns the spotlight on our little bundles of joy – our kids – one of the reasons we continue to be productive, exemplary citizens of this nation. Our children are our biggest assets, our greatest accomplishments and to many true parents, kids give an understanding of what real love is all about.
While the luxuries of life are good signs of worth, there is no better investment than having a child. The rewards are both tangible and intangible: you are the very first role model they try to emulate as soon as they can walk and talk – they are tottering around in your shoes or getting into your make-up as they want be just like Mommy and Daddy and that feeling is the kind of pride no MasterCard can buy.
The UN Declaration of the Rights of the Child states that they are entitled to benefits of social security; a name at birth; nationality; those physically handicapped shall be given special treatment; education; play and recreation as well as protection from neglect, cruelty and exploitation. Kids have to be nurtured and cared for lovingly in order to not only grow, but be released into the society like butterflies, ready to fly off and tackle all the challenges and hurdles of the world.
Women are definitely having less babies, and those born in the 21st century are living in the most indulgent era possible.
Remember when a ‘tablet’ was a pill that you crushed for children and then gave them in a spoonful of syrup to take away the bitterness? Well today we have tech tablets and apps for everything from monitoring your baby’s development and progress to sourcing the best caregivers in your neighbourhood.
Gone are the days of dresser drawers being used as bassinets; baby bed sheets made of flour bags; bird’s eye white cloth nappies and cute chemise tops that both little boys and girls wore. We no longer just drop off our children with the old lady down the road as now there are Montessori schools and speciality day care and crèches that cater to our children’s early cognitive development – just giving them pencils, paper and play dough is so 1985.
Occasionally when there was a black-out and our parents gave us a little more leeway we would be allowed to play hide and seek at night, tell duppy stories, play leap frog and make moonshine dollies.
Having a baby is a huge decision for most women. For Pauline Charlton*, having a baby was a hard decision as she was a crazy party girl who liked to drink, stay out late and live that lifestyle that was as far away from ‘Susie Homemaker’ as possible. “Back in my hey day, nuh party nuh miss me; nuh pool party or old clothes dance nuh happen and me nuh deh-deh so when I found out I was pregnant I seriously had to stop and think if I was ready for all that responsibility as I was only 24.
I considered a termination of the pregnancy but then I thought why punish a child for my own stupidity. I had to quickly shape up and get serious about life as it wasn’t about just me anymore – I couldn’t live selfishly. When Justin was born it was like an epiphany for me. This tiny bundle of joy became my whole new to understand that boys are just as much at risk for abuse as girls. Our society spends a lot of time looking out for our girls but fail to give our boys that same attention and care -that needs to be addressed with some urgency.”
Then you have the cases of missing children, the ones who simply disappear before or after school. There is possibly nothing quite as devastating as that sickening feeling in the pit of your stomach when your child is missing, even for a minute. It is therefore unimaginable what these parents experience. Based on statistics, last year some 1,730 children went missing between January and August, 10 of whom were eventually found deceased. What we do not know are the happy reunion stories.
For Child Advocate Diahann Gordon-Harrison it is not only about preventing child abuse but also as importantly child neglect and endangerment in the form of having very young children skip school to sell on the streets, including peddling late at night. She recently shared that there at times sporadic intervention methods including the removal of the children by police, they often reappear at another stoplight a few weeks later. “So, we are looking at very strategic community-based interventions.
We think sometimes when a child is at risk, community members can assist with saving that child or at least alerting the relevant agencies, then we can intervene and rescue her/him before the child actually reaches the street.
The support of community leaders and members will also help to reduce stigmatization once the children have returned home. Parents also need to be supported at home so that they can be better caregivers for their children; be able to supervise them more effectively, and in this way cauterise any inclination that the child may have to go on the street. They have to make the home a more nurturing environment.”
Some of the underlying factors that lead children to run away or take to the streets include: inadequate parenting skills; neglect or abuse; material deprivation; inadequate housing and inadequate family support; vast migration to urban centres; high levels of unemployment; weakening of the traditional family structure; parental disapproval of pregnancy or homosexuality and the inability to adjust to institutional rules in children’s homes or
other placements.
Those tragic stories are thankfully not the majority as most parents are not negligent or abusive and even when they don’t get it right the first time, great and fun learning is possible. Child rearing can seem like one is walking a fine line and for day care provider Paula Persaud, more parents need to just let children be themselves without adding stress and pressure. “Yes, we want them to be lawyers and doctors and engineers but sometimes our obsession with them getting into the right high school and the right university make us place undue pressure on them.
When they are young, let them be messy occasionally; let them make mistakes and just be
there to catch them when they fall. Every fall, cut or ‘boo-boo’ is a life lesson they are learning so we shouldn’t shield them from the simple hurts and realities of the world as they then won’t be equipped to deal with major problems as adults. They need to understand loss, failure, death, good sportsmanship, sharing, being a true friend and that their word is their bond. Top that off with good values, morals, manners and etiquette and you have done your job as a parent in equipping them to be good law abiding citizens of this nation.”
If Education Minister Ronald Thwaites had his way, child rearing would be this nation’s number one priority as he believes raising respectful human beings to be future law abiding citizens who are well adjusted and productive is the only way for this nation to have long term success. “We not only have to educate our children but educate them effectively the first time so that the limited resources available are not wasted. Our emphasis will initially be on early-childhood education so that we stop wasting billions of dollars annually on remedial education.We must do it right the first time. No child, no student whose parent and family cannot afford to pay for primary education should be denied.”
Nurturing our kids will inculcate positive values and promote the desire to achieve. When you speak to the average 7 to 12 year olds and ask them the age-old question of what they want to be when they become adults, their answers have certainly evolved from the days of aspiring to be teachers, firemen, nurses and policemen. Nowadays everybody wants to be a scientist, nuclear physicist, astronaut, mechanical engineer, architect, pop star, deejays and last but certainly not least, the next Usain Bolt!
Yes, many things about children have changed from one generation to the next but what has remains true is the fact that they need support, love and attention, regardless of their age, class, colour, ethnicity and educational or economic background. Beyond all the defiance, and modern obstructions, there still exist vulnerable human beings who seek your approval and acceptance in all their activities.
Never be too busy for them regardless of your work obligations – children need your presence, not presents: nurture them, protect them and guide them! Remember the Biblical guidance in Proverbs 22:6, “Train up a child in the way he should go and when he gets old he will not depart from it.”
Share this post: