April's Challenge: Childhood Memory

The childhood years has effect to the development of a person. I have seen one of the documentary on the person with psychological problem in passing. There it was later found out that the root cause of the disorder is due to traumatic experience during the childhood. So parents role and action in child rearing.

One Holy Week when I went home I had conversation with my mother about her upbringing. We end up laughing while going in the memory lane and I could never be more grateful for her. 

Our "coffee place" every morning at home

In my family our mother is the disciplinarian. I remember there never comes a day theat she will not discipline us. As a child, we love playing that we are not willing to pause in order to do our household chores or fight amongst siblings. This has caused my mother to have a "high blood" and we ended up being punished. She would use broom or twig of the branches to whip us, her unruly children. And because we were disobedient everyday we already know the routine. Once we saw her with stick on her hand (haha we see her as villain), we would contest going inside home. Even if we haven't receive the punishment yet we would cry letting snot run to make us look pitiful, but of course our disciplinarian won't buy that. The final destination in the altar of our home, there she would tell us that we need to as Jesus for forgiveness, to her if we did not do our chores, and to my sister and and brother if we had a fight (making Jesus and her as witness of our reconciliation).

After that we have to remain in the altar for about an hour reflecting in our actions. But, that is not what me and my siblings did. We would taunt each other of who is the slowest among ourselves receiving the most of the hits. It a good bonding actually. Before we come out from the altar, mother would talk to us and counsel us. The conversation would go like this.

Mother: Do you that I whip you because I love you?

Me: (T_T) (silently  bowing my head) but inside me I go O_O really?

Mother: Let us look at this situation. For example you have little sister or little brother whom you  instructed not to climb the tree lest they might fall. They did not listen to you, they fell and got hurt. What would you do?

Me: I will teach them "lesson" - one or two hit will suffice

Mother: Then why will you teach him/her lesson.

Me: Because I want to correct it. Make them remember not to do it again because I will punish them.

The mother would be silent for a while, she then proceed.

Mother: Another example, if you have a neighbor which is younger that you and you instructed not to climb the tree lest they might fall. They did not listen to you, they fell and got hurt. What would you do?

Me: .......

Mother: Why will you not teach them "lesson"?

Me: Because they are not my family.

Mother: That is what I do too, I will correct you because you are my child. I love you.

She will then continue to counsel on my obedience to my older siblings since I am the youngest. While reminiscing on it during our morning coffee I now love her more. She was so patient with us in teaching us good morals. Never got tired of correcting the same offense we do time and time again. I also discovered that her whip that time is not that strong, its just psychological that we thought it was very painful hit. Because just as we exit from the altar the mark of lashes from hit is no more visible.