Somebody gonna get hurt real bad

There is a debate on to beat or not to beat your kids. Some believe in gentle love upbringing and some swear by the tough love upbringing.

My upbringing was of the latter style. One red cross in my marked homework and my left palm would pay the price; my mom would cane that extremity of mine, one blow for one red cross. If you are wondering why my left upper limb bears the brunt, I am left handed and my mom makes it a point to hit the very appendage which made the mistake.

My mom, no matter how exhausted she was, would make it a point to check my marked homework and if there were mistakes, I would be dead meat, figuratively.

She was extremely creative in selecting tools to whack my ass. The items consist of broom, clothes hanger, ladle, belt, pipe hose and plant twigs. As a child, I had the wish to make those items disappear from existence.

I was also smacked for my constant mischief and foibles. From 4 years old to 16 years old, it was the same drill but the intensity of it was assuaged considering me growing up and maturing.

I was never given much pocket money to school. During my primary school days, it was 20 cents and since my mom packs me homemade food to eat during recess, the 20 cents went right into my piggy bank. In secondary school, my pocket money was 50 cents and for public bus fare, my mom would give me RM2.

I only owned a wallet when I turned 15 and if you guys think that my wallet was a high end item, well, nope. It was a five bucks wallet I purchased from the pasar malam. (night market)

My father never yelled at me, let alone hit me. But, he never stopped his wife from making mince meat of me due to my perpetual monkey business and carelessness in homework. He tacitly knows what my mom is doing is right.

After passing in PMR in flying colours, hits from mom came to an abrupt halt. She no longer spanked me for mistakes in my homework. Instead, she began to tell me this,"I see you made a mistake and I know that you are intelligent enough to figure out what is wrong and do better next time."

Her words astounded me and it brought me to the realization that my Mother was sculpting me into perfection; each blow from her is the making of me. And when I proved that I am now moulded into a capable person, she set me free, trusting me 100%. And, I pledged to myself that I will never breach that trust she has on me. 

The greatest gift any parent can give to their children is trust.

But trusting parental trust on children can be a curse, especially in this era.  

Parents fully trust their children, give in to their every whim and fancy, and lavish their children with smart phones, video games and adolescent fancies. 

Such kids take their parents' trust for granted and go on orgies of decadence, their parents, oblivious of their activities.

Kids, not knowing what is right and wrong, slip into waywardness and get into deep trouble due to the condoning from parents.

There is a moral ground when it comes to instilling righteous capabilities in children and some spanking when they derail is fair enough. It is for them to not make a botch in the future. Action speaks louder than words. 

My mom inculcated discipline, cautiousness, prudence and virtuousness in me by flogging me.

I am thankful that my Mom raised me the way she did. I will be forever grateful.