Ong Ye Kung on bringing up children

Wifey doesn't think I am crazy like Ong Ye Kung's wife. She is just perplexed. No, I don't make beds for my kids. With the exception of weekends and holidays, I don't even insist that they do. I do many other things though, enough to make them ashamed for making me their servant. As we do not have a domestic helper, I have my pick on which activities to choose. Specifics aside, this chap approach and mine are probably quite similar. The catch phrase here is, "I can't just scold them, they are not going to get it...."

But occasionally I do scold them even if they don't get it. I repeat the same scoldings and as they grow older they understand it better and they also see how it linked back. I know it works because they told me so. I wasn't so sure years back but felt other options were inferior. No, I do not nag at them, that is being lazy and superficial.

I no longer need to scold them as much as before. That's good. I am waiting for them to grow up enough to be able to scold me. Gotta be very patient here. Before getting there, I know I would have to teach them how to scold people to help and not destroy them. Behind the scene is much much prayer.

If anyone thinks this is not being Asian or Confucian (we are Chinese), my take is Confucius though great is far from complete. Corruption starts where Confucius left off. We need to go beyond him, we draw from the Gospel. God invite us to "scold", more accurately struggle with him. It is in our nature. Remember Jacob fought with Him the night before meeting Esau. Too many examples to mention here.