Summer 1998
If I Had My Child to Raise Over Again...
If I had my child to raise all over again,
I’d finger paint more, and point the finger less.
I’d do less correcting, and more connecting.
I’d take my eyes off my watch and watch with my eyes.
I would care to know less, and know to care more.
I’d take more hikes and fly more kites.
I’d stop playing serious, and seriously play.
Run through more fields, and gaze at more stars.
I’d do more hugging and less tugging.
I would be firm less often, and affirm much more.
I’d build self-esteem first, and the house later.
I’d teach less about the love of power,
And more about the power of love.
--Diane Loomans
"A hundred years from now it
will not matter what sort of house I lived in, what my bank account was or the kind of car
I drove, but the world may be different because I was important in the life of a
child." |
The Missing Piece | Educational Opportunities | Article Archive
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Nancy Flood, floodn@missouri.edu Consumer & Family Economics Specialist Putnam County University Outreach and Extension Center Last Update: May 23, 2001 |