WHAT ARE WE DOING FOR OUR CHILDREN?
By Elizabeth A. Lewis
(Elizabeth A. Lewis, in Industrial Educator.) This is a question that we, as parents, ought to ask ourselves. Are we letting them come up as the weeds by the wayside that are left uncultivated? Are we allowing their minds to be beclouded by the dust of doubt and unbelief thrown up by every passing influence? The words they hear, the books they read, and the company they keep, all form a part of their training. What the world is suffering for to-day, perhaps more than for anything else, is good fathers and mothers who will conscientiously train their children in the right methods of thinking and acting. We must not wait till they are old enough to be sent away to the college or academy before we begin this educational work. Is it not a sad thought that we exercise more judgment in the cultivation of our crops than we often do in the care of our children? What would you think of a farmer who would let the weeds grow almost to maturity before he plowed the field and prepared it for good seed? Let us learn a lesson from the florist. He has choice and dainty plants. He carefully prepares a place in his greenhouse, works the soil, sees that every weed and hard clod is removed, and then transplants his plants into a larger place. They begin to grow and promise to be beautiful specimens. But by and by noxious weeds spring up. The florist is occupied with some coarse crop, from which he expects larger returns. He forgets his rare plants, and lo! he wakes up some morning to find the beautiful things almost choked with these weeds. What a helpless task he has on his hands. The little plants are dwarfed and stunted; and even when, after much labor, the weeds are removed, it is doubtful if ever these plants will be what they might have been under different treatment. The wise florist looks well to the early days of his plants; for he knows if he puts them out in the open garden weak and stunted, they will not be able to resist the wind and storm. So ought parents to look well to the early training of their children. First impressions are most lasting, and if we sow good seeds of truth in the minds of our children, there will be no room for evil influences to get a foothold. May the Lord help us to do faithful work before the enemy sows tares.