by Richard Serra

Created on: January 31, 2008   Last Updated: August 26, 2010

One of the things that fill my heart is when I see a father who takes the time and effort to interact with their children. The most important stage of a child's life is the period of time they first begin to recognize what ever it may be that you are trying to convey to them until they reach the age of seven or eight.

At that time, they still are very eager to learn what ever a father may offer in the way of support or teaching them the right way to interact with the world so that they are ready to face what life has to offer in their future.

However, it is the first seven or eight years that are the most important, and the reason I say that is because that is when they are the most receptive to whatever it is we teach them. They will carry this through the rest of their lives, and it is so important that we reach them at this stage of their lives, as they are most impressionable at that age.

Some extremely talented children grow up without ever knowing how much talent they posses, and usually find it difficult to explore those talents once they realize they do have some special talent.

This is because there was no confidence building at a time when they needed it the most, and most often lack that confidence when they do try to use those talents. Not the case for all children, but for a great many, this is usually the case.

By rewarding a child with praise and taking an interest in what they do, a child is made to feel proud, and will begin to exercise all that was provided in the via a fathers interest in them would provide.

Simply put, a child can be compared to a plant in some ways, in that if a plant is nurtured and given all that is necessary to grow properly, it will grow strong and healthy. Withholding all that is necessary to grow properly, the plant will still grow, but it will be dramatically impaired compared to one that was properly attended to.

Therefore, it is with a child's need to grow up feeling confident and proud that we focus our attention. The nutrients are what we provide as far input and care to the child. If we fail to do so, the child will grow, and may be healthy, but the mind is not as strong, and can be a real negative later on in life.

Everything a child learns good or bad is what they will bring into their adult years, and if we take the time to ensure the child has as much of what we can offer in the way of positive input, then we can expect the child to be happy and confident throughout their lives.

I personally never had that input, and it took almost a lifetime to realize how much I could have done in life if only there was that support and interest. I can tell you I felt cheated in that I was not made to feel proud when I did something special. We all like to feel as though we are important, but it is never more needed than when we are growing in those first seven years of our lives.

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