African kids: helping them bring out the hero in them

African Kids.

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Today i woke up remembering what happen 19years ago. Looking at my son and how he has destroyed my DVD.

When I was about 10 years old, one Saturday morning, my mom travelled leaving me and my younger siblings. my Dad that were at home.

I decided to do something great to impressed my Dad, first to make my Dad happy and second to make my mom ask who did this when she returns.

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I decided to sweep and mop the house. To make the places clean and tidy. I took the rubber bucket in the toliet while my dad was in his room, go fatch water put some detergent and was carrying it to clean the room. Suddenly the bucket slipped from my hand and broke.

The bucket broke. I was sad and unhappy. But I felt bad more because I couldn't fulfil my dream of making my Dad say "you are a good girl", that statement that always made me high and happy inside. I had to first clean the spilled water and report my mistake to my Dad.

So when my Dad came out and saw the splashed water and broken bucket, I was still explaining how I wanted to clean the house and then... He was getting a whip and he flogged the hell out of me.

I wept and wept more so bitterness filled my heart. Oh this is a man I wanted to impressed, did he really see I was trying to be a good girl, doing a job without being asked or told? I went to the back of the building and cried bitterly and tirelessly. As I was crying, I vowed that I will hate back, never clean again do evil and even leave that house. Revenge was what I wished.

Though little time cleansed the resolution but the experience is still here in my heart and i never forget even after two decades.

Most of our African/nigerian parents due to poverty and ignorances, transferred aggression and impatience kill the genius in their children.

They wiped out the problem solver in their kids.

When the child would take one week or more to figure out how to Make an electric car with woods and mold, how his parents would be called the parents of the one that invented a car... Just as he is about starting the construction, the mother would use a cain and flog, format his brain.
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"is it the expensive firewood that I bought or do you know the distance i carried that wood from, do you know how tired i was, is it that wood i entered forest to get, that you are cutting, have you washed all the plates in this house have you done your homework, it's now car you want to build, car builder, do you know how much firewood costs and do expect me to cook the food you and your brothers will eat with my hair?"

Each statement is sandwiched with a slap Or a Cain .

Such kills thinking and morale. It makes kid very bitter.

The African child has no support to be adventurous.

The African kid's innovation is killed when he's still trying to start.

The genius in him gets a stupid mockery.

His actions are judged and not his intentions.

Even if you have a mischievous child, causing problems everywhere, be careful with that little child. Be careful enough to separate when he is being unruly and when he's being innovative.

Ask him questions, if he starts crying before talking or if he keeps quiet, give him confidence to talk. When he takes scissors and cut your clothes because the tailor in him is shacking his head, the action may leave you furious at first such you can't remember his/her good intentions, you can scold him but the next day, make sure you go to the market and get her pieces of clothes to practice with. Tell her/him to sew all he wants.

A dream suppressed in a child may never rise again.

The African child do not have access to the best of schools, he doesn't have access to the best enabling environment, he lacks the best of teachers and resources. He is naturally disadvantaged to be an innovator, the last thing he needs is for his mind to be shut from exploring that equal advantage of thoughtfulness.

Meanwhile my Dad is a great man, just an African parents who can make decision catalyzed by poverty and ignorance, many of our parents are great, but we the younger generation should be better and greater. We should let our kids evolve.,

am Dinah4sure and am always sure