Bonjour.
This statement does not come from me.
It’s from Pamela Druckerman. She is the author of “Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting.” She made the statement after her observations on French parents.
I didn’t read Pamela’s book but only her excerpt on WSJ – which stirs up quite a bit of discussion. In all fairness, I won’t say whether I recommend the book or not. But I think this thought-provoking book is worth a read. I find many tips that I totally agree.
Not too long ago, there was another book took the world by storm. Remember Tiger Mom? The book tells why Chinese mothers are superior.
Since when parenting has become a competitive game? And since when we start comparing who’s the best parent… by country? Or even by culture?
Me? What do I think?
Here’s my 2 cents.
We tend to admire things from foreign land. We prefer imported cars to locally made ones. We appreciate imported handbags more than ones that made by a factory in your neighborhood.
So it’s normal to think that “imported” parenting methods are better than our own.
I grew up admiring things from the West. I admired the freedom bestowed on children by Western parents.
Personally I don’t believe there’s such thing as who is better than who. The best parenting is what works best for you. I will not pick one parenting approach over another. I will pick the best approaches across all parenting methods.
I don’t care whether it is from France, America, Chinese, or even Indian. As long as they are good, I will use.
Isn’t it the best way to do this? Why limit yourself if you can have the best of the best?
It’s also something what Bruce Lee did when he created his own martial arts system Jeet Kune Do – by combining the best techniques from different martial arts schools and life philosophies.
I will put down what I know as best parenting methods in my upcoming book “The Uncensored Guide to Parenting” soon.
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