This post is too difficult to translate into English, so I will express the main ideas.

Now that I am not in Brest, nor I explore new cultures, new cities or meet new people, the posts are sometimes quite personal. It is difficult for me to find the balance between personal and professional character of this blog. Meanwhile it is defined, I will continue expressing feelings and all commentaries are welcome.

Before my departure to Barcelona the post ?20 kg? was published, now the title is ?20 years?.

Last week my son reaches age 20, and by chance I spoke several times about the responsibility parents have with some friends. It is normal to use the word ?my? when we refer to our sons, it is something I don?t like, I prefer refer to them using their names. They don?t belong to us, I have never felt they are my properties and even I add, our responsibility is limited.

One colleague told me she has been studying with her son till late in the night because she felt pitty and didn?t want he to study alone. Who has to study?

Another colleague reckoned me he had the intention to work harder in order to earn more money so he could offer his sons all the possibilities they are successful.

In this connection a lot of questions arise, and I begin to question all the established criteria: what kind of success we want our sons and daughter to reach? What is the meaning of ?the best for them?? to what extent our responsibility as parents ( I mean, give them money and all the comforts)?

Where am I in relation to this reflexion? In order to find an answer I asked my older son, the one who turned 20 years old. And he said: ?Mum, you taught me how to adapt to new situations and how to take in account people who surround us? . I think it was not a bad replay, I worked hard to give them tools to face life, to express their feeling, to show respect and to deal with difficult situations.

Anyway, we will see what happen in the future, but even so I feel that I have a limited responsibility, they are free and I am only like a light hose for them, a port where have a resting, a mother.

In some way I behave as a mother with my students, but with some modifications. I support them in order to give them a chance to bring out their best and to reach their potential, this is what I want to do as a teacher.

This is a link to a beautiful text and I hope you write some comment.

http://agutie.homestead.com/files/children_1.html

 

This page is also available in: Español