Words of Life

I have alot to learn about parenting... but I think I will start here.

Words of Life

You can speak to your children of life,
but your words are not life itself.
You can show them what you see,
but your showing and their seeing
are forever different things.

You cannot speak to them of Divinity itself.
But you can share with them
the millions of manifestations of this Reality
arrayed before them every moment.
Since these manifestations have their origin in the Tao,
the visible will reveal the invisible to them.

Don’t mistake your desire to talk for their
readiness to listen.
Far more important are the wordless truths they
learn from you.
If you take delight in the ordinary wonders of
life,
they will feel the depth of your pleasure
and learn to experience joy.
If you walk with them in the darkness of life’s
mysteries
you will open the gate of understanding.


~ William Martin (The Parent's Tao Te Ching: Ancient Advice for Modern Parents)

I am going to frame this poem and put it on the wall in the little munchkin's room.