I asked my child, “Do you like going to school?”

“I don’t know,” she replied, “I go to school because I do not NOT feel like going, so I go.” 

“Do you feel your daddy’s love when he sends you to school?” I continued.

“Yes.”

“Do you feel happy enjoying bonding time with your sister when she goes to the same school with you?”

“Yes.”

“Well then, you actually LOVE going to school!” I declared. 

My child was surprised. She thought about it for a few moments. A smile spread across her face as realisation set in. Yes indeed, she did enjoy all the activities on the way to school and her school life as well!

I continued to ask her if she had learnt anything in school. Yes, she learnt new things everyday. I told her that the knowledge that we receive from teachers, who had themselves learnt over several years of education, was a present from the teachers. It is such an exciting thing for our brains to learn new things everyday! And we make new friends and interact with them daily. In fact, there is nothing not to enjoy, and everything to enjoy in school! 

Therefore, I told my child, we must speak the truth to ourselves. Say that you do enjoy going to school! Acknowledge your feelings. 

It is important that children are guided to be in touch with their true feelings. If there is nothing adversely affecting their learning journey in school, then they are really enjoying school life. It is not right to deny our hearts the joy of learning, even if there are others who are feeling really negative about it. In asking our children such questions, we are guiding them to use their sound minds to evaluate their current situation. (Previously, we spoke about using our sound minds to decide how we are to cultivate our emotions to bring about a desired outcome through 2 Timothy 1:7. This is in the article “What is My Desired Outcome”.)

We must enjoy what we do and feel proud of it!