THOSE WHO KNOW ME will say that I am not a gambling man. That’s because I recognise the house always wins and the odds are always against me.
Almost every day we are treated to commentary relating to our youth, most of which is negative.
I am willing to bet that the majority of Barbadians who are 40 years and older, though troublesome in the pre-adult stages of our development, turned out all right, all things being equal. It would be useful to consider what types of forces were at work that led to the majority of us following positive paths as adults.
Many of us 40 and above can certainly relate to the concept of advanced punishment which our elders bestowed upon us in anticipation of our wrongdoings in the future. We were taught to respect our elders, even if they were strangers. We were taught to respect ourselves and our peers. We were taught to be contented with our circumstances as we worked hard to make them better.
We were taught the fear of our God which, as I have come to understand, is to acknowledge that though we may transgress in the dark, our Creator was still able to see. This fear of our God nurtured our conscience, it strengthened our principles.
Are our young people fearful of anything? Have we taught them that whatever they sow, they will reap? Have we taught them that their actions always have consequences?
I suspect that the debate on flogging will remain for some time and I am glad that the respective opinions are being articulated. Now while I support alternative forms of discipline, I have to declare that had it not been for the rod of correction freely given by my mum, granny, uncles and aunts, it is very possible that my life would have been filled with disobedience, illegality and violence.
Gone are the days when the mere threat of a father’s correction was enough to steer us back on track. This is just one of the reasons why the indispensable role of men in parenting cannot be underestimated.
– SEAN ST CLAIR FIELDS