By the time you read this you will be a big boy.
I know you will be kind, funny, wise, sensitive, interesting, and a ball of fire!
Your parents are all of these things.
I know you will be strong and a wonderful hugger.
Your father was and still is.
I wish you happy, happy, days! You will have some bad days, yes.
They are important so you can appreciate the good ones.
There will be disappointments; I know you will be able to handle them.
Granny always says, “Life is 10% of what happens and 90% how you handle it.
I pray you learn about humility.
Please always let an outsider feel inside, and always, always be kind.
I hope you learn that honesty is the best policy,
And that doing a hard day’s work will always make you feel better.
Be a loyal friend, one people can count on and trust.
I hope you put all of these wonderful things you possess
To make yourself and the world around you a better place to live in.
Please learn about the “God Stuff;” it really works, trust me.
You have such a wonderful mother.
She will be the one to teach you all the good things in life.
Remember how to play, for you are in for a loving time.
I hope we will be close always.
I can’t wait to see you. I love you already.
Granny
Susan L. Schmidt
www.familyfriendpoems.com
I award this book 3.5 stars.
Letters to my grandchildren by David Suzuki is exactly what the title suggests. Suzuki would like to leave a compiled set of letters on topics that he believes to be really important to the next generation, and in fact, pulls no punches on telling the reader in the Author’s Note that he believes this book to be a “loose stream of ideas.” I appreciated that Suzuki was very open about this concept so I knew exactly what I was getting into with this book.
There are many
I award this book 3.5 stars.
Letters to my grandchildren by David Suzuki is exactly what the title suggests. Suzuki would like to leave a compiled set of letters on topics that he believes to be really important to the next generation, and in fact, pulls no punches on telling the reader in the Author’s Note that he believes this book to be a “loose stream of ideas.” I appreciated that Suzuki was very open about this concept so I knew exactly what I was getting into with this book.
There are many wonderful things about this book. Suzuki is undoubtedly a fascinating individual, and I loved the anecdotes and stories about his life that are sprinkled throughout the pages, and this was truly the strength of the book. The scenes of the Canadian incarceration during WWII were haunting, and the depictions of his life becoming one with the wilderness were mesmerizing. I found myself, however, wanting to stay within those stories, not within the other text, and I could tell I would like to read a memoir by Suzuki.
The problem with this book, and like I mentioned before at the beginning, is that it is essentially a set of lectures and ideas that Suzuki would like to leave his grandchildren. My parents and in particular my own father, is exactly at this stage of his life right now. He is finding it more and more important to leave his legacy and his viewpoints on the world to his children and grandchildren. These parts of the book make it harder for me to read as it is dry and in lecture format, and I receive much of that already in my life from someone I need to listen to more than Suzuki. Thus, while this will be very valuable for Suzuki’s grandchildren, there may be a loss of the same importance because of the mode of communication to the greater public.
Overall, it’s clear that Suzuki has led a good life, a fascinating life, and it’s worth reading about– I see he has an autobiography (or two), which makes a lot of sense. That said, this book was less about us, the readers, which makes it harder to read, and more about his grandchildren, which makes sense, as that was the purpose.
www.goodreads.com
To my beautiful grandchildren…
Our world is changing so fast and there are many things I wish for you…
I’d really like for you to know about hand-me-down clothes and homemade ice cream and leftover sandwiches.
I really would. I hope you learn humility by being humiliated, and that you learn honesty by being cheated. I hope you learn to make your own bed and mow the lawn and wash the car. And I really hope nobody gives you a brand new car when you are sixteen.
I hope you get a black eye fighting for something you believe in. I hope you have to share a bedroom with your younger brother or sister. And it’s all right if you have to draw a line down the middle of the room, but when they want to crawl under the covers with you because they’re scared, I hope you let them.
When you want to see a movie and your little brother or sister wants to tag along, I hope you’ll let them. I hope you have to walk uphill to school with your friends and that you live in a town where you can do it safely.
On rainy days when you have to catch a ride, I hope you don’t ask your driver to drop you two blocks away so you won’t be seen riding with someone as uncool as your Mom.
If you want a slingshot, I hope your Dad teaches you how to make one instead of buying one. I hope you learn to dig in the dirt and read books. When you learn to use computers, I hope you also learn to add and subtract in your head.
I hope you get teased by your friends when you have your first crush, and when you talk back to your mother that you learn what ivory soap tastes like. May you skin your knee climbing a mountain, burn your hand on a stove and stick your tongue on a frozen flagpole.
I don’t care if you try a beer once, but I hope you don’t like it. And if a friend offers you dope or a joint, I hope you realize he is not your friend. I sure hope you make time to sit on a porch with your grandparents and go fishing with your uncle.
These are just some of the things that I wish for you – tough times and disappointment, hard work and happiness. To me, it’s the only way to appreciate life.
Children / parents Quotes – Inspirational Quotes, Pictures and Motivational Thoughts
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