Shada Al-Aamry

RALPH Waldo Emerson said, “Character is higher than intellect. A great soul will be strong to live as well as think.” Emerson’s essays have always encouraged self-reliance and believing in one’s self. He believed that the capabilities of human beings show up within us by trusting and understanding ourselves. Emerson’s ideas have contributed in shaping America, helped their people overcome anxieties and guided them at that time. However, the idea of relying on one’s own self is not something that some families in our society adhere to. It is an important concept that should be promoted to help us shape our generations.

Relying on ourselves means that we should be able to do things on our own. We should not wait for others to do things for us. Some of us lack self-reliance. We have been programmed from a young age to think that our families will do our work for us. Some of us are not even allowed to make our own decisions when it comes to going to university, jobs or wearing clothes. People, since childhood, should be programmed to make their own choices so they grow up confident and fearless to make their own choices. It will also teach them responsibility. Parents should be there to guide and support their children. They should not have full control over their children, something that would enable our children to mentally develop. Children will eventually grow up as robots who will only wait for commands and lack life experiences. Even Obama, who was the President of the United States and had authority, let his children find their own paths.

However, this does not mean that children should not listen to what their parents say. Parents among all people could be right in some points because they have lived on this earth more than their children. They have also experienced life more than their children and only want the best for their children.

I want to conclude this article by saying that raising your child means focusing on building their personalities and character so that they could be able to deal with life. Remember, children also have dreams that they want to see materialize.