Youth, our promise

Winter is the season of trial and difficulty. It is also the season of reflection, to look back on the past and then to gaze at the future as we go about our workaday business. This time of the year, there is so much mulling to do.

We cannot change anything until we accept it. So said Carl Gustav Jung. Acceptation cannot go wanting. But then, with it must also come the firmness of purpose and the will to do better where there’s been a lack.  Dedication and determination are the words. For certainly, words do provide the means to meaning and the ‘enunciation of truth’.

Our children, otherwise called young people, are the ‘cream of the nation’ and the ‘positive force’ with enormous capacity to shape the mien and character of the nation, which is sometimes called development. Amelioration, too. To prepare our youth, then, as the guardians of our nation in the days to come is more than just imperative. It cannot wait. Our children cannot be left on the wayside, forlorn and without care, love, attention and good guidance.

This must dawn on our parents too, for it is them after all who must guide and counsel their children more than their teachers, by giving them ample love and attention they need so much as they are growing up, teaching them how to dream and by helping them nurture their ambitions. Also, more importantly perhaps, our parents must impart good values to their children. For that is indeed raising children. There is so much more to bringing up children than just begetting them. Parenthood is a responsibility.

As our children are out of schools on vacation this time round, what they employ their minds on and engage in day in and day out should be the concern of our parents. Sadly though, that is often not the case. Our youth are out in the streets, hollering and making trouble, beating each other up, drinking and abusing substances. Our parents, however, are busy making the most out of their favourite pass time engagements, playing archery and gambling away, leaving the children without care and counsel of the elders.

And then we talk about our youth going astray, dropping out of school and leaving home doing nothing good in life. Who is to blame? Indeed, as it is often said, the best inheritance parents can give their children is a few minutes of their time each day, as it behoves a father to be blameless if he expects his child to be.

It is a relief, however, that our sherig leaders have come up with National Youth Policy that seeks to respond to the needs of our youth in the rapidly changing society by providing a broad framework within which all stakeholders can and must contribute comprehensively. The policy recognises globalisation, changing economy, easy access to drugs and alcohol, neglect and inadequate family attention as the major risk factors for our young people today. It aims at creating environment in which the lives, work and success of our young people are placed at the centre of growth and development of a nation. All these are good.

Bhutan as a country where more than half its population is under the age of 25 cannot afford not to invest in her children. We must give them all we can, hope and encouragement, love and care, and all else good to cultivate the grace of our children’s minds. It’s everyone’s responsibility. Above all, parents’. Hark all, the promise of nation is calling.
By Jigme Wangchuk

2 Responses to “Youth, our promise”

1. Netra Binod Sharma says:

   January 16, 2012 at 12:34 pm

   Very right Mr. Jigme. We as parents must spend some time and energy inculcating good values in our children. Quite often we ask them to do this and that right thing when we ourselves do not follow those. Children learn a lot from their parents and it is only appropriate that we follow first ourselves what we are preaching. Otherwise children lose faith and confidence in what we are preaching and see through our double standards. The day each of us practise what we preach to our children all things will fall in right line.And we as parents have achieved this at our individual home front the nation’s youth will blossom.

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2. Kunzang says:

   January 19, 2012 at 2:41 pm

   Do some of us need parenting education to guide our children? This is because we see even some parents having girl-friends and Aumchungs outside our family and always bring problems and quarrels back at home.

   Let us not blame only to our Youths but those sort of irresponsible parents too have a shared-responsibility and duties to shoulder to solve our issues. Thanks.

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