What would you do when your kid makes a mistake? Do you punish them or talk to them gently to guide them to develop self-discipline?
The first story shared by Henry will give you an answer to this question.
When Henry was studying primary 2 in Singapore, his hardworking mum made him snacks to bring to school for morning tea.
One day, being invited to the school canteen by his friend, Henry discovered a variety of snacks, very tempting. He wanted to get some, but he did not have any pocket money. He felt guilty to ask his mother for money to buy snacks because she prepared them for him every day.
Days later, Henry noticed a five-dollar note (equivalent to $100 nowadays) on the table. “Maybe mother had dropped it in a rush!” Henry thought. Realising that the money would enable him to buy the yummy snacks in the canteen, he excitedly put the money in his pocket.
In those days, five dollars was a huge amount of money, which could afford about 100 of snacks in the school canteen. Henry excitedly bought many snacks and generously shared them with his friends. He felt hugely satisfied.
Soon, Henry’s mother found out. She suddenly called him over. She pointed to the money in his bag and asked him gently where the money was from. As his mum’s tone was very gentle, Henry felt very at ease and readily told her the truth.
Having heard the story, his mum was not angry. She continued to ask him why he had taken the money instead of giving it back to her. Later, she came to realise Henry didn’t have any pocket money to buy things he wanted.
She said to Henry, “From now on, I will give you pocket money. However, you should spend your money wisely and learn to develop the habit of saving.” After a while, his mum continued, “Ok. I will buy a piggy bank for you to save money. When your piggy bank is full, I will give you an equal amount of money as a reward. What do you think?”
Henry nodded happily. From that time on, he began to get pocket money. He used part of it to buy things he liked and saved the rest. He had learnt to develop the habit of saving, which he still keeps doing today.
Although it was wrong to take money from his mother, Henry’s mother didn’t blame him. Instead, his mother discussed it with him, found the core issue and developed a method to help Henry be more self-disciplined, which benefits Henry throughout his whole life.
We hope you enjoy this story and find it helpful.
Next week, Henry will share his second story, which may thrill every parent.
