Introduction
Parents have a duty not only to bring a child into the world but also to nurture the child to maturity. It is one of the most difficult tasks but with commitment and diligence, it becomes plausible. Every parent should desire to bring up his or her child in the best possible way to foster nation-building and societal morals.
Although James’ parents separated later when he was still young, they had contributed significantly to his life. His mother raised him after the separation and ensured that he acquired the necessary school knowledge up to high school (Silver 1). She also helped to shape his life choices and made him realize that he needed to take responsibility for his life after school.
Main Body
Mr. and Mrs. Connolly had a stable relationship that had resulted in the birth of Freddie Connolly. Freddie had some physical challenges. His adenoidal breathing made his breathing sound like there was some blockage. Despite this condition, he was a typical boy growing up in the neighborhood. His father seemed to dislike his habit of watching Television. As they head for the hunt in the wild, he plainly discusses it with him and James. He tells him that there was no Television where they were going. Mr. Connolly also compares him to his friend, James (Silver 1).
It does not make Freddie happy. The way he said it tapping his son’s forehead with his finger did not even please James. When they went into the forest for hunting, Freddie could not keep with the team. He started crying while snot came down thickly from his nose. It made Mr. Connolly furious that the hunt had to come to an unsuccessful ending (Silver 1). They went back and closed the camp to drive back home. His father dropped him about an hour before reaching home because he could not put up with him. James got concerned about his friend and waited for him to accompany him to the house. It did not help since even Freddie seemed to be unhappy with the treatment he received from his father. He does not even say goodbye to his friend, James.
The harsh treatment from his father affected him so much that it was slowly building hatred in him. One day as he played with his friend, James, they spotted a deer (Silver 1). Freddie went to fetch his father’s hunting rifle. Due to the push and pull, Freddie’s father heard the commotion and rushed towards them (Silver 1). As he tried to stop Freddie from shooting, it was too late because their struggle caused the trigger to pull off and kill his father. Parents should always keep away dangerous weapons from the reach of children.
Parents should also not teach very young children how to use weapons even for hunting unless they have grown up and can control their emotions. The fact that Freddie could obtain the gun almost immediately displayed how careless his father was in keeping the arm. He had also trained him on how to use it.
Mrs. Willing was another example of good parenting. She had a master’s degree in Child Development and twenty years of classroom experience. A school is a place where parents take their children to gain knowledge. They spend much of their days with the teachers. Just like Mrs. Willing, they help develop the children socially and academically. She was able to identify the rude habit in Marcos before it could get out of hand (Silver 1).
She called the parents to give them the information she had gathered concerning their child. But it seemed that James and Melinda wanted to protect their son, Marcos, more than they wanted to help (Silver 1). Parents are supposed to support the teachers whenever an issue arises that is out of the ordinary. It gives the teachers confidence to handle children’s matters when they have the parents’ support. Instead of warning and correcting their son and finding out from the teacher how best they could help him, they lash at the teacher. It is also not correct to discuss the teacher’s conduct in bad faith in the presence of his or her student. It makes the child use bad language when referring to the teacher.
When Marcos told his dad that his teacher was fat, he took it very casually and went ahead to make it look like a joke. On the day of the suspension, James was angry and even interrupted a class that was going on. Because of his anger and tone of voice, the teacher had to advise him to come later for a discussion concerning his son. But James and his wife had made up their minds regarding the school administration and the teacher.
They did not want to discuss further (Silver 1). They were planning to take their child out of the school and look for a better school that can accommodate the behaviors of their son. It was a wrong motive on their part because they would not be solving the problem. They would rather solve the problem first and think of the transfer afterward. It is a problem with many parents who pamper their children. When a parent disregards the advice of such a qualified teacher in children matters, then he or she absolves the teacher of any future blame. The child also loses interest in anything the teacher says or does.
The writer uses flashbacks several times to enable the reader to grasp the concept. Every time one reads something that has some historical background, the writer goes back to give the narrative of the story. It helps to compare the current scenario with the past. When James and Melinda meet the teacher at the school, they discover that she has a large body. And James remembers that they are some of the reasons he fell in love with his wife. Her rubbing of fingers in the office reminded him of their dating experience (Silver 1).
Conclusion
James also remembers the incident when they wanted to go for the hunt. He wondered why his mother had to seek his father’s permission yet they had separated. She thought that she wanted to make the right decision for the upbringing of her son.
It is agreeable that parenting has got challenges. But when one shares the challenges, it becomes easy. The learning institutions have the responsibility to assist the parents in shaping the destiny of the students. The students also have to learn to respect their parents and their teachers. The parents and teachers can assist the students by helping them to do the right thing and stay obedient.
Works Cited
Silver, Marisa. ‘Creatures – The New Yorker’. The New Yorker. N.p., 2015. Web.