There are a lot of gifts out there that you can give your son. And some of those gifts are costly. There are gifts that do not cost a lot either. And there are the gifts of the heart that will last forever.
Some of the things that I have given my son over the years will stay with him for his lifetime and on to his children.
One of the first things that I gave him was his very own photo album. My mother covered it for him in the pattern of material that I chose. And over the years each and every single picture of him has gone into that album. He will take that album out and look at those pictures and he will realize just what a special little boy he is to me. And one day his own children will see what their father look like as a young boy, a teenager and then as a young man.
Another gift I have given my son is the gift of his baby book. In this book are recordings of his birth, his family information, his first day of school, his first outing with his family, his visit to the zoo, his first birthday and his first Christmas. These events are there for him to know how it was for him, and since he was just a baby for some of them, he has no way of knowing except for this book and of course what else I tell him. He will take this book out and realize just how much he was loved and how special he is to me. And one day his children will also see this book and they too will know how much I loved their father.
The gifts of love and understanding can sometime be tough gifts to give, and then there are times when they are the easiest to give. For example, when my son does wrong I punish him because I love him. He however doesn’t understand that concept! As with most children! To discipline a child is an act of love that I truly believe in. This gift will teach him right from wrong and he will know what to do through out his life because of it.
The gift of hugs and kisses! These come all of the time. I truly believe that any child deserves to have hugs and kisses, even when they do wrong. Once you have overcome your anger of the bad deed, sit them down and explain to them why they got into trouble and then give them hugs and kisses. Give them hugs and kisses each day, and especially before they go out the door. We do not know what tomorrow brings and the last thing I want is for my son to not have his hug and kiss from me for the day should something happen to me during the day. Nor do I want to spend the rest of my life knowing I forgot to give him a hug and kiss that day should something happen to him. So, hugs and kisses everyday.
The gift of doing things together, as a family! This is so very important for each parent to do. Take some time out of the day to just sit down and talk with your son/daughters, it is so very important to them. Listen to what they have to say. You may actually learn something yourself. Play some ball with him. Let him help you build something. Teach him how to build something. Do a craft together, play a game together, watch a movie together. These are the gifts that will stay forever in his heart. Make pancakes together!
The gift of teaching! Teach your children well and they will not part from it. The book of Proverbs in the Holy Bible teaches us this gift. And oh what a wonderful gift it is. I teach my son manners. I teach my son to share. I teach my son to hold his tongue and I teach my son to calm down. These are very important gifts I believe.
The gift of being himself! This is a gift that only he can learn for himself. He must understand that life is full of things that will go bad as well as the things that will go great! He must understand that he will have growing pains both physically and mentally as he gets older. And he must understand that he has to learn the ABC’s and the 123’s of life. He must understand that his feelings will get hurt and that he will not always get his way. He must understand that no matter what, I love him and that God loves him. And he must understand that there will be bumps and bruises and that he can come to you NO MATTER WHAT!
The gift of his first Bible and the gift of taking him to church, that lead to the gift of his salvation! This was a gift that only my son could choose. And he did, on his own. My son accepted Jesus into his heart and was saved and baptized on Mother’s Day of this year. Oh what a wonderful gift indeed my son took from our Lord.
The gift of his very life! All of these things that I have mentioned are all part of his life. But he truly understands that he must take care of himself in order to go on. He understands that he must eat, brush his teeth, exercise, learn, do right, go to church, mind his manners, have love and kindness in his heart, laughter in his soul. He truly understands that these things are essential as the air he breath’s in his every day life.
And when he comes to me to tell me that he has accomplished something on the Nintendo, or the Play Station, or something that he did at school or in Church, it is such a delight to hear him! He is always so excited telling his story. And he is so very honest. And this is yet another gift that I have given my son. Honesty. I follow the rules at all times, how else he is going to learn. I have to set the good examples for him to make it in the world.
And one day, when he is old and gray and a grandparent himself, he will look at his children, his grandchildren and he will say to himself. “I did good, because my Mama did good with me!” And that is the greatest gift of all.
I hope that this has helped in some kind of way.
God Bless.
©LKD 2002