Today is my son Nikhil's 9th birthday. As he steps into his ninth year, I am reminded of these sagacious words of Kahlil Gibran:
On Children
Kahlil Gibran
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let our bending in the archer's hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.
5 comments:
Hi Krish wish your son happy birthday on my behalf. The thought was very nice.
Thanks a lot Srihari.
Many happy returns to the young fella!!!
Many years back I had read this letter by Abraham Lincoln to his son's school teacher. It goes as
"He will have to learn, I know, that all men are not just, all men are not true.
But teach him also that for every scoundrel there is a hero; that for every selfish Politician,
there is a dedicated leader...
Teach him for every enemy there is a friend,"
Adding this link for you to access the full letter.
http://www.geocities.com/v_sricharan/nice/lincoln-1.txt
Great stuff!!!
Thanks a lot Mavin. Will convey your wishes to my son. Lincoln's letter is truly inspirational.
Best wishes, Krishnan.
The piece you quote sounds a bit like a softer version of the sentiment from some of the Henry Kuttner stories on generation gap: your kids will go where you cannot, they will do things that you cannot, they will think thoughts that you cannot - & not preparing for this is the cause of much parental grief.
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