How often have we found the right path?
Some take many turns before they direct themselves to the right path.
Some find their destination with the first turn they take.
Me?
I would have been stuck taking turns forever had it not been for my parents.
To be more specific, my mother has been very influential and guided me to the right path in the journey of life.
1) I’ve been a lazy kid. Eat-play-sleep repeat was my mantra.
I never helped mom when it came to chores in the house.
I could out do the best actor when it came to acting sick or in pain, just to avoid doing household work.
My mother always made it a point to show me stuff even though I wouldn’t do it.
Right from how to sweep, how to wash clothes, how to make tea, noodles to save me from starving etc I’d seen my mother try her best in coaxing me to help her.
I guess it was her way of making me learn when she headed to mangalore for a couple of weeks to take care of my granny. I started doing my own work, doing the dishes etc. It was irritating from the start, but now as I write about it, I feel I should have started earlier.
Fun/weird/pathetic fact: I finally started making tea for myself just a year ago.
Yes.
Have a good laugh on me. I did.
But now I do know stuff. I help my mother wherever possible. However long it took, she finally succeeded.
2) When it comes to my education, no one has been much understanding then my parents.
Imagine having 2 kids where one is in the top 3 of the class and one who fails in one subject for 3 years in a row.
I’m the latter one.
I failed thrice till the 9th STD just in one subject i.e. Science. I had lost hope of doing well in my board exams. Even if I did, I thought how I’ll survive later as the more I go ahead, the tougher it shall get. To top it all, I got jaundice just a week before the exams. What a whammy right?
But there was something that kept me going. The constant support of my parents which really kept me going. Even though I scored mediocre marks in the prelims, they supported me. They just said it’s an exam. I need to do my best. God will do the rest.
I studied not by fear, but with a strong will.
Who knew that the boy who failed thrice in science would eventually score a 139/150 in the finals?
Yeah!! Like a boss!!
Not even jaundice, not even my history with this subject could deter my will. If you scare your kids to do well, they’ll study in fear. Be with them, tell them it’s ok. You tell them all that counts is their effort. And it’s my belief that your kid shall do well with each attempt.
My parents never got another chance to help me out ever since. Ever since I was in college, if there was a subject that I couldn’t handle I gave it extra attention. I never left it for the end. My mother taught me to fight the tough battle first. The easier ones can be left for later.
Now I can proudly tell my mother that she has indeed made a man out of me.
Even though I don’t know a lot of things, I’m learning.
I won’t stop, because my mother taught me to never stop learning, never wait for tomorrow. If there is something to be done, do it today, do it now!
I always will remember that and till I’m alive, I’ll always strive to be better than I was yesterday.
With respect to my post, there’s a video via HDFC Life, which conveys the same message. How a person can be self reliant and what part do parents play in making a better person out of their children is shown in this video.