Saturday, December 29, 2012

Simple living . . .


Yesterday, I was reading a book on bringing up children.

2 things which stuck me . . . the author was telling about how children cherish times spend with parents and how they value simple things to play with rather than costly toys . . . One more thing I would add is they cherish unusual food available locally as much as occasional treats from KFC or MacDonald’s  . .  . rather more.

It has been very true with the trio in our home.

About a month back, I had gone to attend the funeral of one of our staff’s mother. This was in a village quite remote. On the way back, we had stopped at a village market. My driver forced one long stick of sugarcane in my hand. The whole journey back, I was wondering of the different ways I could finish off the 6 feet long sugarcane once I reached home.

Images of me and my better half chewing on the whole stick did not look much realistic. 

However, one reaching home, things all changed. Shalom and Charis had never seen a sugarcane in their life. With quite a bit difficulty I cut the thing into small little pieces. The pieces were chewed with the same gusto as when they gobbled chicken nuggets at the KFC outlet couple of months back.


Over the next week, sugarcane ‘nuggets’ were one of the preferred choice of dessert after the end of a meal or a reward for homework done or vegetables eaten.

The other aspect is that of toys. We’ve tried getting all the three kids some good toys. Some of their uncles have also gifted them very good and expensive toys. Of course, they cherish them.

But, when it comes to pure enjoyment . . . here is one snap.


I get the same feedback from quite a lot of my friends. Yesterday, one of my colleagues was narrating how his son loves to play with empty cardboard boxes more than anything else.

So, my friends, don’t worry about purchasing expensive toys and food for your kids. Do try out the local stuff you find near your homes. They could surprise them the same way as toys from Fischer Price or food from MacDonalds.

And last of all, the time we spend with them is the most valued. The best reward our children cherish is an ‘elephant ride’ at the end of the day. 


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