NURTURING BETTER HUMAN BEINGS

A mother should tell her child that every wealthy person’s father or grandfather was once poor but became rich through hard work. Similarly, the child can achieve anything through hard work. In this regard, a mother should instill in her children the quality of maturity, ensuring they do not enter society with an immature mindset. Let’s clarify this with a few examples. Nancy Alva Edison, an American woman, had a son named Thomas Alva Edison (d. 1931). Edison was born with hearing difficulties. His schoolteacher noticed that he couldn’t hear properly in class and wasn’t able to do his schoolwork well. The teacher became frustrated and labeled Edison as a “retarded boy,” expelling him from school. However, Edison’s mother played a constructive role here. She instilled in Edison the belief that he was not a disabled child but that his disability was a challenge he could overcome by using his natural abilities. She made his education her mission. As a result, Edison’s name is recorded in history as a great scientist. It is commonly believed that a person born into a wealthy family is fortunate, while someone born into a poor family is unfortunate. A mother’s role here is to teach her child, if born into a poor family, that being poor is not a deprivation. Such a mother should teach her child that while a wealthy child may have money, a poor child has an increased incentive to strive, which becomes a source of strength: If a rich person is born with a silver spoon in his mouth, the poor person is born with an incentive spoon in his mouth. A mother should tell her child that every wealthy person’s father or grandfather was once poor but became rich through hard work. Similarly, the child can achieve anything through hard work. Another misconception is the division of society into the “haves” and the “have-nots.” This is a false dichotomy. We often see that a person who belongs to the “have-not” category in childhood later becomes a member of the “haves.” For example, individuals like C.V. Raman, G.D. Birla, Mr Oberoi, Dhirubhai Ambani, and Dr Abdul Kalam were seemingly from deprived backgrounds in their childhood but later became prominent members of society. Therefore, the true dichotomy in this world is not between the “haves” and the “have-nots” but between the “potential haves” and the “actual haves.” o