Bound For Greatness

Last week, I wrote about Preemie girl and now it's Big brother's turn. My son whom I raised since he was 5 months old is now 21 and hopefully will be graduating from college this year. Unlike my daughter, I had no behavior issues with him when he was growing up. He was such an obedient child that it was easy to bring him along with me to public places because he was very behaved. It was when he started school that problems started. Although he was a sensitive and intelligent boy, he did not like studying. Unfortunately, I did not have the skill nor the inclination to instill in him good study habits because I too did not like to "study". Therefore, I could not teach him what I did not have, which is weird because I was and still am an avid reader and a life-long learner. It is not the learning part that I hated about school but the process of teaching of what must be learned that was being used by traditional schools. I was the type that needed teachers who knew how to challenge and motivate me. However, unlike my son, I forced myself to study when I needed to even if I found the lessons incomprehensible or was bored to death with the subject matter, while he simply did not care whether he passed or not. This attitude led me to do research on learning styles and learning disabilities as he was growing up. Finding information on multiple intelligence was an eye-opener for me but it seems that in 1995, not many teachers or schools were aware of this or if they were, they did not apply this in their teaching methods and remained very traditional in their evaluation and grading system. And so, my son went through his high school years struggling in all his math subjects but breezing through MAPE, Social Studies and the like. Like any concerned mom, I got him weekend tutors in math and Filipino to check his understanding and skills at the same time to give him some advanced lessons. He passed but clearly, he never quite developed a love for study.


BUT, there were other things that he was very very good at.  For the longest time, it became a habit for me to sing to him nightly while putting him to sleep.  I think I have memorized all the nursery rhymes and cartoon theme songs in the world. I even had a Spanish one.  His birth-mother was tone-deaf and for this reason, I'd like to believe that his musical ability is all because of me.  He first sang during his pre-school culminating activity where he had the role of the prince in Cinderella, and all through his primary grades up to high school, he was the class favorite to compete in the school's annual singing contest.

 

When he began his intermediate grades I would teach him some simple chords using the Yamaha guitar left to me by my dad.  Before long he was mastering it and was teaching himself to play the harder chords.  I bought him his first guitar soon after, which was upgraded to a more expensive one by the end of his high school.  Today, he is good enough to get invited to play in college acoustic bands.


But it's not all about music for my son. He dabbles in photography, getting more adept at it as time goes by.  He is also an accomplished swimmer, competing in high school intramurals and used to play little league basketball. But his other great passion is Taekwondo.  Although expensive, I enrolled him in lessons when he was 9 years old believing that it would develop discipline and character in him.  I did not know that it was going to be a long-term love affair for him.  He had enough motivation to make it up to Black Belt- First Dan and joined competitions every summer.  He was good enough to make it into the college varsity team and won a silver medal (it should have been gold, but that is another story...) in the senior division of the 2009 NOPSSEA.  He plans to make 2nd Dan this summer.


He is very good with children and when he was 11, he asked to become a god-father to one of his nephews. He is a loyal friend, a loving, caring and protective son, grandson, brother and cousin. He does not abuse his privileges and never asks for his wants, only for his needs.  Except for wishing that he has better grades, there is not much more I can ask for in a son. I continue to pray that he will be a good man, a man that God meant him to be. Although he is far from perfect and continues to be a work in progress, I have no doubt in my mind that my only son is bound for greatness. 

Greatness Starts @Home Blogging Contest


Comments

  1. I am so happy for your son. He is in the right path. He is so engaged.
    My 9 year old is enrolled in a guitar class and I pray that he will have more patience to practice.
    Cheering you on, proud mom!

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    1. thank you Pearl! I will pray for you and your family too.

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  2. Having a supportive parent is essential in growth and you are certainly supportive. I'm sure he'll find what he loves and be very successful. Good for him and good for you.

    Have a terrific day. :)

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    1. wow! Hi Sandee, what a privilege to have you commenting on my blog. I really enjoy yours. thank you!

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  3. Everyone has its own uniqueness, a particular role to play. The Lord, I know, has given everyone's talent for him/here to excel if he/she has the sense of sensitiveness to discover it. The mother is the most resource person to tap that kind of ability. Congratulation, you've done it to your son.Thus, he became a talented fellow. Support him, especially in spiritual point of view. God bless.

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  4. Hi dear! When I was reading through your post, I suddenly realized that I've had the same experience. Only that it was of my brother's. My younger brother, didn't quite excel in subjects such as Math & English, and had barely made it through HS. But he was great in a lot of other things. He drew pretty well, and has now achieved a lot of good marks in graphic designing. He also plays different kinds of sports, and still manages to play each game with much determination... And with that in mind, I applaud you for taking care of your son the best way you knew how. Your patience to learn and to learn with him is remarkable. =)

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  5. I admire your loving patience and presence all during your son's growing years and up to now. He is sure is bound for greatness because you were there to gently push him.:)

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  6. A great post form a great mother.You did raised your son well.He may not excel in school but his talent is loaded and was developed by your right guidance.

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  7. you are soo lucky to have your son! soo talented and loving :)

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  8. great job in looking after your son!! he have such a lot of good talents!! definitely way to go! xx

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  9. I think your son is more right-brained than left-brained. That's why he excels more in the arts. You're a good and supportive mom and I admire you for being very supportive with your son's interests. With God's grace, your son will be able to succeed in whatever career path he chooses. Congratulations for a job well done raising your son. :-)

    Take care and God bless! :-)

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  10. Hello. Your love for your son is truly beyond words .
    This is a beautiful write-up that would not fail to fatten anybody's heart. Congratulations to your son. :) Take care :)

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  11. Your post reminded me of this very nice quote: "Everybody is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid."

    It's very important for parents and teachers to realize that not everyone has the same talent or interests. Kudos to you for being a supportive parent :)

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  12. We all are born different. Others are gifted academically while others are gifted with unique talents. That's part of our individual differences. Imagine if we all the the same level of intellect and we don't have singers and entertainers. Your son is created to create music or for music for that matter.

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  13. wow! this is very inspirational mam. and congrats to your son. He wouldn't be in a right place without your love and guidance, so congrats din po :)

    godbless you and your family :)

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  14. You brought him up well! Congratulations!

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  15. Your son is a well rounded individual. All credits are due to you.

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  16. Everyone of us has our own strengths and weaknesses. Your son may not have the academic strengths that other kids have but he is very well talented and I do believe that he'll also learn something from it.

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  17. whew.. when i was a kid, i was hoping i would be a talented.. now I congratulate you for having a child like him. :)

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  18. congrats to you finally all your effort as a good parent have been paid off

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  19. keep him in the right path. that's all there is to it. :)

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  20. children who are having trouble academically are usually good on the artistic and creative faculty ....i adore you for raising your child and made the best of what you can give as a parent ... kudos to you :D

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  21. Congrats po. You're a great mom indeed.

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  22. As parents, being supportive to our children in their endeavors is one of our major responsibilities. We have to be an inspiration for them to achieve their aspirations in life

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  23. you have so many accounts about your son. not that i'm complaining. I am just touched :) and it's a happy read hearing about your joy as a mother. with a loving mom like you, he is really bound for greatness. cheers!

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  24. It's the milestones like this that we do realize how well, ...time flies after all, doesn't it?

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  25. I am really inspired by a very supportive parent like you. It would be close to reality that your son will have a bright future.

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