Cultivating responsibility.

"He's the one who approach his parents to inform them of what his brother's and sisters need. The other children look towards him for advice whenever problems arise and their parents are not nearby." One neighbour was telling another about a young man who just went into one of the houses across the street from where they lived.

"Well, what do you expect? He's always been like that since all of them were young. Their parents are always so busy, so he is the one who tends to their needs most of the time," the other neighbour agreed to the comment on that young man.

"It's certainly not in the genes as the other children are not that way," noted the neighbour.

"How is it that he is such a responsible one even when he was in his teens?" wondered the other neighbour.

"What do you expect? He is the eldest and so on his shoulders fell the responsibility of looking after the younger ones when the parents had to be away at work."

"However, it is not always the case that the eldest are given the most responsibility. Sometimes, if the eldest have to go elsewhere for studies or work, a younger child may be given the responsibility of looking after the rest or getting things done in the home."

"That's true. I know the second child in a family who has develop such a sense of responsibility as the eldest had to work while the third or last child was too small to be given any responsibility."

"When you think about it, it's so important to establish that sense of responsibility in every one of our children. It would make him disciplined and be responsible for every aspect of his/her life."

Bring responsible is such an important characteristic of a person that every family ought to think of ways to instill it our precious children so that they will grow into responsible adults in our society.

If an adult feels responsible for him/herself and everything in the world around him/her, then what a beautiful world this would be. This responsible person would certainly do the necessary to perform as well as possibly be, search for no excuses but look for opportunities to improve not just him/herself but as much of anything he/she comes into contact with in everyday life.

To cultivate such a sense of responsibility, children from as young a age as possible should be given responsibilities. Responsibilities need not be difficult. "Please tell mummy when daddy/brother/sister comes home." is a responsibility that any young child who understands the instruction can perform. "Come and help daddy pick up all the toys." is another responsibility. "Please take the towel from the basket and give it to daddy." is another responsibility. Then, as the child grows older, there is the responsibility of collecting the clothes, the responsibility of reminding someone of something and the task of hanging up the clothes to dry when the washing machine has completed its job.

Of course, just being responsible may not be perfect yet. Cultivating the right positive attitude is just as important.