I must be cruel, only to be kind’- Shakespeare

Sounds paradoxical? Actually it is not. Remember our parents punished us when we brought home a friend’s pencil or something from the shop? Or when they grounded us for being stubborn or making nuisance before guests?  They were being cruel to us by scolding us or making us return the item we so coveted but, come to think of it, they were being kind.

They were teaching us invaluable lessons. They were building our moral fibre. Today, I thank my parents for being cruel to me at that point. Most of us have heard the story of the boy who brought home something and his mother didn’t say anything to him. It went on and as he grew, he became a thief. One day when he was caught and brought before a judge and asked if wanted to say something, he asked his mother to be put behind bars along with him. She didn’t stop me from stealing so she is the culprit.

Had that mother been cruel at the right time, she would have saved her son. Parents today don’t discipline their kids even when they are creating public nuisance. They are scared that the kids will call 911. But the end result is when the kids grow up, they have no sense of social responsibility and they take everything for granted. So they face work problems, their relationships don’t last long and they are high strung.

We are responsible for our kids and so we have to teach them good manners, adjusting with others and being responsible for their actions. If we don’t discipline them, we are not fulfilling our duty as a parent. We don’t have to hit them but take measures to make them realize that they cannot take everything for granted.

There is no harm in being a little cruel to raise a mature, well-mannered and well-adjusted child. Such children will excel in academics, will have a flock of friends and will be happy. So go ahead and be a little cruel.

So be it!!!