From A Piece of Mirror and Other Essays by Daisaku Ikeda
From the article Fatherhood pages 50 – 51
I heard a touching story about a schoolgirl who was ashamed that her father was a plasterer, while the fathers of her friends wore suits and ties to work. She told her mother how embarrasses she was, and her mother took her to the construction site where her father worked. There the girl saw her father on a sizzling hot roof, drenched in sweat, but immersed in his job. “Take a good look at your father who’s working so hard in this heat,” her mother said. Later the daughter asked her father why he did not become an office worker, so he could be working in a place with a roof instead of sitting on top of one.
The father grinned and said, “Different kinds of work suit different people. Everyone is doing their best to make a living. But no job is as easy as it looks from the outside. I’m really proud of my work. Please don’t ever judge people by their appearance.”
The girl thought long and hard about this and began to understand the meaning of her father’s words. She resolved. “There’s no doubt in my mind anymore that my Dad is the greatest in the world. I’m going to be just like him and do whatever I do the best I can.”
Fathers — and mothers — who take the highest pride in their own lives, in whatever path in life they have chosen, who face each challenge with confidence and high spirits — such parents leave their children a truly priceless legacy.
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2013 Cynthia Klein, Bridges 2 Understanding, has been a Certified Parent Educator since 1994. She works with parents and organizations who want more cooperation, mutual respect and understanding between adults and children of all ages. Cynthia presents her expertise through speaking and private parenting coaching sessions. She is a member of the National Speakers Association and writes the Middle School Mom column for the Parenting on the Peninsula magazine. She works with parents of 4 – 25 year-old children. Contact Cynthia at bridges2understa.wpstagecoach.com, cynthia@bridges2understanding,com, or 650. 679.8138 to learn more about creating the relationship you want with your children.
