Why is our child not turning out as well as the children of others? Why is our child the way they are? We search for the reason and cannot find it — yet in truth, there is but one simple cause.
The more educated the parents, the more they tend to focus solely on their child’s academic achievement. But household chores — particularly cleaning — are never taught. As a result, the child never receives training in responsibility toward cleanliness, which is one of the most fundamental disciplines of life. That is where things go wrong.
When a child has never properly learned to clean themselves from head to toe, nor how to care for their clothing and belongings correctly, what follows? The habit of careful observation never develops, and the mindfulness needed to prevent things from becoming dirty or disordered never takes root.
And when observation and mindfulness are absent, the same lack of attentiveness carries over into learning. Meanwhile, the children of parents with far less formal education — who were trained in cleaning and household tasks from an early age — have mastered the basics. When the time comes to study, they prove to be sharper and more capable.
Children who have been well trained in foundational tasks — in cleaning and keeping order — come to their teachers already prepared. Whatever is taught, they grasp it readily and with ease, because the groundwork has already been laid.
Guidance given at the Kaew Sarapadneuk Hall, Wat Phra Dhammakaya
March 1st, 2015
