I am grateful that I work and learn on the ancestral and unceded lands of the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ and Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Nations in Burnaby and on the ancestral and unceded lands of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō and Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations in Port Moody
April Article
Easter
April 4, 2021 is Easter. The date of Easter varies every year, depending when the first full moon happens. Easter falls on the first Sunday after the first full moon. Easter is a Christian holiday but has been celebrated in many different ways all over the world.
Brief Story of Easter
Easter commemorates the resurrection of Jesus Christ. On Good Friday (the Friday before Easter Sunday, in which Jesus Christ was arrest, trial, suffered and crucified), Jesus Christ was executed by crucifixion. His body was taken down from the cross and buried in a cave. On the following Sunday, some women visited the grave and found that the stone had been moved, and that the tomb was empty. Jesus Christ was later seen by many people. His followers realized that God had raised Jesus from the dead.
Parents' Reflection
Today, most of the people associate Easter with Easter bunny and Easter eggs. Those are all symbols of new life. No matter you are a Christian or not, Easter is about LOVE, SACRIFICE, FORGIVENESS and HOPE.
LOVE
We express our love in many different forms. We try hard to provide the best to our children. We keep them safe. We want to protect them from harm. We spend our savings to get them into different activities and classes hoping to prepare our children not to fall behind others at the starting point. However, besides materials, unconditional love and affection provide them a sense of security to explore the world. As 2013 study from UCLA found that unconditional love and affection from a parent can make children emotionally happier and less anxious. And 2015 study from University of Notre Dame showed that children who receive affection from their parents were happier, displayed less depression and anxiety and were more compassionate overall as adults.
SACRIFICE
SACRIFICE can be defined as, “Something you give up, usually for the sake of a better cause.” A better cause for a parent is ‘MY CHILD’. A lot of parents are willing to give up and sacrifice for their children. They may sacrifice their entertainment, their resources, their time in taking them to school, making breakfast, lunch and dinner, and sometimes their happiness and even safety. Is love equals to sacrifice? Well, sometimes love requires sacrifice, but overall, love is more about compromise than sacrifice. Compromise needs both parties to be willing and be respectful to sacrifice or take a step back for a better cause of a better relationship.
FORGIVENESS
It is often easier to forgive your little ones when they looked at you with their big innocent eyes and saying ‘I am sorry’. But when kids grow older, when their words and behaviours hurt you, forgiveness won’t come easy. Forgiveness is a process that a person needs to go through and acknowledge their hurt and grief, so as to achieve peace, not only with your child but also with yourself. Forgiveness begins with feelings, acknowledge our own feelings and recognizing your child’s feeling; follows with empathy, to understand your child’s feelings through their eyes; and ends with respect and honesty.
HOPE
As a parent, we have hopes for our children, ever since they were born. We hope that they are healthy, happy, have good friends, independent, successful in school and life… These hopes gradually become our expectation on our children. We expect them to listen and follow our way (which parents believe is the best way for them), graduate with high marks, have a high pay professional career, get married and have their own family, be independent and… But we forgot that it is more beneficial to our children’s success in their future if they have critical thinking, open-mindedness, honesty, pursuing what they really love, feel secure, be resilience and respectful.
Overall, as a parent, we can choose to practice LOVE, SACRIFICE, FORGIVENESS and HOPE in the following ways:
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Listen to Them with Your Heart
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Give Them Your Time
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Praise Them
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Provide Affection
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Acknowledge and honour their Strengths
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Be True and Honest
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Establish Your Boundaries to create sense of security
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Have Sense of Humour / Have Fun
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Include Your Child in Family Discussion
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Unconditional Love