Modern parenthood

 Little Kayla sat on the edge of her bed, swinging her legs back and forth, her tiny fingers clutching a drawing she had made in school. It was a crayon sketch of her family, her baby brother, her daddy, and her mommy. In the picture, everyone was holding hands, smiling under a yellow sun. But as she looked around the empty room, the drawing felt like a dream. Her mommy wasn’t home again. She had left early in the morning and hadn’t even kissed Kayla goodbye. Her daddy, as usual, was still at the office working, always working.

Kayla was only six years old, but she had already learned to pack her own lunch, get her brother’s bottle ready, and tuck herself in. Their house was filled with everything smart TVs, beautiful couches, new clothes but the one thing that seemed missing was the presence of the people who mattered most. Her parents were always “busy.” Meetings, deadlines, phone calls, business trips. It seemed like everything came before Kayla and her brother.

Across town, another child, Emmanuel, waited outside his school gate long after all the other children had gone home. His eyes scanned every car that passed, hoping his dad would finally remember today. But just like yesterday, and the day before, no one came. When the sun dipped behind the trees, the school guard sighed and called Emmanuel’s aunt to come pick him up. His father, a successful businessman, often spoke on television about building the future. But he didn’t seem to realize he was already failing to build his own son’s future.

In today’s world, many parents are chasing dreams, money, and success with admirable ambition. They want to provide the best life for their children, and that is noble. But somewhere along the way, too many have started to believe that providing things is the same as being present. They forget that children don’t remember the price of the toy they remember who played with them. They don’t care if the car is big or the house is fancy they care who tucked them in at night, who listened when they cried, who clapped when they danced.

Parenthood is not just about giving life it’s about being part of that life every day. Children are not just tiny bodies; they are souls in formation. They are watching, listening, absorbing. A mother who ignores her child in favor of her phone is teaching that silence is love. A father who only sees his kids on weekends is unknowingly telling them that work matters more than family. These children will grow up to be parents themselves, and they will repeat what they learned unless someone breaks the cycle.

Every child is a seed, and parents are the soil. What you feed them, they will become. If you plant them in love, presence, patience, and guidance, they will grow into strong, confident, compassionate future leaders and future mothers. But if you plant them in neglect, loneliness, or emptiness, they will grow with cracks that even success cannot fix.

There’s an old saying: “Children may forget what you said, but they will never forget how you made them feel.” And it’s true. Kayla didn’t need a thousand toys she needed her mommy to notice the drawing she made. Emmanuel didn’t need a smart watch he needed his father to show up. These children are not asking for much. They just want to be seen, heard, and loved.

As the years go by, these young hearts will grow. One day, Kayla will become a mother herself. Emmanuel may become a leader. But what kind of mother will Kayla be if no one ever showed her love? What kind of leader will Emmanuel be if no one taught him compassion?

It’s time for parents to remember their first and greatest calling: to be there. To turn off the phone. To look into their child’s eyes and listen. To stop chasing a future they may never reach and start embracing the little lives in front of them now. Because in the end, no amount of success matters if you’ve lost your child’s heart.

Let us raise children who don’t need to heal from their childhoods. Let us raise them in love, in presence, in purpose. For every child we hold today is a future holding the world tomorrow.