If I walked into the ground floor of the superstore at the city centre to get my preschool child a gift, and I saw bicycles, balls, boots, dolls, push cars, rackets, etc. I wouldn’t pick a thing. Instead, I would move to the first floor of the store to see the possibility of getting that one impactful gift.
And, if the first floor brimmed with kiddie gadgets in tablets, computers, telephones, headphones, etc, I would move on to the second floor to see if I could lay my hands on that enduring gift. Should I get on the second floor and see rows upon rows of kiddie designer clothes, I would leave for the third and final floor, in the hope of finding that singular gift. But if cakes, candies, cookies, cereals, chips, ice creams, and pizza crowd the third floor, I would head for the exit.
Why? Because the profound gift I am looking for is not in the superstore. What I am looking for is a gift that teaches responsibility early in life. It is a gift that develops empathy and compassion. A gift that encourages emotional growth, promotes physical activity, supports social skills, and helps build commitment and discipline. It is a gift that imparts daily lessons of kindness, patience, responsibility, and respect.
