Stop 'dumping' your kids in shags

This week, I have heard fellow parents with school-going children complain about the long holiday that has just begun. If they are not complaining about the noise the children will make in the house, they are complaining about the amount of food that will be consumed or the amount of washing powder that will go down the drain.

I have been tempted to chip in the discussion and give them a piece of my mind but when I think of how defensive parents can get, I zip it and mind my own business.

If my late mother was alive, she would be ashamed on behalf of all these complaining parents. What kind of parent doesn't want to spend time with their children? Before you embarked on the journey to parenthood, weren't you ready to embrace all that comes with it.

I have even heard some parents planning on sending their children to their grandparents in the village because their presence in the house is too much for them.

If you cannot stand your children in your own house for two months, what makes you think your aging parents back at home will embrace the situation?

The current generation of parents has totally cut ties with their children and no longer find it necessary to bond with them. I have seven siblings and we were born very close in age.

The first four in the family can pass for a set of quadruplets as well as the last four. Not a single day did I hear my mother complain about our presence in her house.

If our parents could handle that number of children at a go, I don't understand why we modern parents go berserk when schools close yet we revolve around 2-3 children per household.

I remember my mother running around the house trying to put everything in order yet she never at one point sent us elsewhere for the holidays unless she was tagging along.

If she was not trying to end a fight between our first and second born, she was running after our sixth born who had perfected the art of beating the hell out of me even though I am older than him.

Once she caught up with him, our third born would walk by dragging our screaming last born on the floor like a sack of maize.

Before my mother could even raise her voice to stop her, our second last born and fourth born would be pouring water on the floor trying to 'make' a swimming pool. What I loved most about her is the spirit of teamwork.

At this point, where the house was almost in total chaos, she would just surrender and join in the chaos pouring water everywhere and dragging us all from point A to B as she cheered any pair that was in a fight. That, she said, was the joy that came with parenting.

Not a single day did our father raise his voice to tell us to stop making noise. Reason? He knew we were children and children are bound to be hyper when playing.

If he really needed his peace, he would slowly rise from his seat and exit the house to go and look for 'Greener pastures' where he would enjoy the tranquility. I must admit that because of this kind of parenting, our family grew so tight that even in our adulthood we can never get enough of each other.

Parents, stop limiting your children from enjoying their childhood with you. Be happy that at least you will have them around you for a longer time this holiday. Embrace them and strengthen your family's bond.