Give a child success by giving him a dream.
My Grandma gave me many tools that have enabled me to soar above the many storms in my life: she gave me a growth mindset (“Success Part One: Think to be Successful”); she gave me faith, hope, and love (“How to Survive No Matter What” ), and she gave me a dream…
I was about three and a half years old when I first read to my Grandma. I read the plaque on her wall by her phone. She was so happy that she picked me up and hugged me tight for what seemed like forever to me at the time. A while later, the same day, we were discussing what I want to be when I grow up. I announced that I will be a writer someday. And she said she was certain I would be a wonderful writer.
Every chance my Grandma had after that day, she encouraged me to write. She gave me paper and pencils and markers. I would draw pictures and do my best to write a description of them. Then in school I started to write poetry and essays and research papers. I always got A’s on my writing. And the first thing I did when I got a paper back with and A on it was show it to my Grandma. She would always hug me and tell me to “Keep up the good work, Keep on reading and writing”. She told me so many times that if I continued reading and writing I would become a writer.
I have kept on reading and writing. Right now I am reading The Collected Works of Flannery O’Connor. I have always admired Flannery O’Connor since I read her short story, “A Good Man is Hard to Find” in high school. Last winter we camped at a campground in Milledgeville, Georgia. There we found Andalusia Farm, the farm of Flannery O’Connor’s family, where she died of lupus before age 40. We had to go back several times so I could walk around there and practice piano on Flannery’s piano. I felt so inspired there.
Everything gift my Grandma gave me has enabled me to survive life’s storms, tornadoes, and hurricanes. Especially her gift of a dream of becoming a writer. When life was hard, I kept on persevering because I promised Grandma I would never stop reading and writing and trying to become a writer. I had a goal I had to reach: Every time I write an article to spread my grandmother’s message of hope and love and faith and encouragement and publish it on www.bobbiejrae.com/nearariver, I look toward heaven and give thanks for the unbelievable awesome woman who gave me the dream to become a writer.
Now my dream is to share Grandma’s message of hope, love, and encouragement to the ends of the earth like I promised her. I will persevere until I do.
Every chance you get, please encourage your child or any other child to have a dream. Every child needs to have a dream. A child who has a dream is a child who has hope for the future. No matter how challenging life may be at the moment, a child with hope for the future can weather the challenges.
Give a child a dream every chance you get.
Let the encouraging words in these near a river posts help you
soar like an eagle above life’s storms.
Need ideas for great gifts?
The honeymoon is over. Now what?
Your get out of your kids what you put into them!
Turn your child into a leader and a successful independent adult.
