While the children are yet in their infancy feed them from the breast of heavenly grace, foster them in the cradle of all excellence, rear them in the embrace of bounty. Give them the advantage of every useful kind of knowledge. Let them share in every new and rare and wondrous craft and art. Bring them up to work and strive, and accustom them to hardship. Teach them to dedicate their lives to matters of great import, and inspire them to undertake studies that will benefit mankind. (Abdu’l-Baha, Selections from the Writings of Abdu’l-Baha, p. 127)
I’ve been familiar with this quotation for years, but a friend recently forwarded it to me and i was struck by the many concepts embedded in this little paragraph. Is there something that particularly stands out to you regarding the advice in this quotation? For a new project which i’ll hopefully “unveil” soon, i am looking for additional pithy parenting wisdom from sacred texts or writings that have inspired and driven your parenting philosophy. Got any to share? I would love to hear!!
“Strive that your actions day by day may be beautiful prayers” is a quotation I keep in mind constantly. We use it to frame discussions with our children too. We talk about our days in terms of “beautiful prayers.” “What did you do today? Did you do your best? How was that a beautiful prayer?” As an educator, I try to be mindful that my actions and attitude can have a lasting impression on my students. I strive every day to make sure I am not just saying nice things, but truly modeling behaviors and attitudes I want my children and students to show. It is not always easy, so we also talk about what “strive” means. 🙂