Theme: Honoring father and mother

Honor your father and mother

Dora was a good girl. But her father was worried about her. Some time ago, he had been noticing that his daughter sometimes had no good manners with her mother.

Dora's mother was very devoted to her family, especially to her beloved daughter. But Dora did not understand this and often answered poorly to the care she received.

Every morning the mother would wake Dora fondly, prepare her breakfast, separate a neat uniform for her, make a tasty lunch and take her daughter to the school entrance. Then she would prepare her lunch with the food she liked to eat, take care of the schedules, the hygiene, help with schoolwork, take care of the friends who came to play and deal with a myriad of details connected with her routine. But Dora saw none of it.

For her, her mother was always bugging her, sending her to brush her teeth, wash her hands, bathe or go to bed at bedtime. She thought that her mother did not want to buy the things she asked for every time they went out together and also that she would not let Dora stay in the electronic games for as long as she wanted.

In those moments, Dora became irritated. She responded badly to her mother. Sometimes she even screamed or repeated what she said, mocking and undoing her directions.

Because of that, her father called Dora to talk and said:

- Daughter, you have learned in religious education about Jesus’s lessons, haven’t you?

- Yes Dad! She replied.

- How nice! They are very important experiences, teach us many laws of God! But did you know, Dora, that over a thousand years before Jesus another man, named Moses, also taught his people some laws of God?

- No, Daddy! I did not know. - said the daughter.

The father continued:

- In the past, there were no laws like today. People used to do what they wanted. But there were many fights, deaths and injustices. So, Moses, who was the first person to speak to people about the laws of God, wrote commandments, that is, rules that people should follow in order to live better. It was only ten and they said basic things like "not killing," "not stealing," "not lying." And one of these ten commandments was this: "Honor father and mother." Do you know what that means, daughter?

- That is to respect father and mother? - Dora asked hesitantly.

- That's right! - Her father encouraged - And even more than respect. Recognize the importance of parents, take care of them when they need and always treat them well. Therefore, daughter, look: Moses, so many years ago, wrote that commandment. Then Jesus, who was the most evolved Spirit ever born on Earth, confirmed it. And Allan Kardec, who codified our Spirit religion, also emphasized it by writing an entire chapter of his book The Gospel According to Spiritism under this title: "Honor Father and Mother." Therefore, my child, this is a lesson that we must respect. I want you to remember that and always treat mom very well. Understand that all she does is wishes your good, even if it displeases you at that moment. Is it ok?

Dora then understood why her father was having all this conversation with her and had to promise to improve her moods.

The days passed. Dora tried to keep the promise but she often forgot and disliked the mother again, having to be scolded.

One day the phone rang and brought the news that her grandmother was very sick and was admitted to the hospital. Her mother was the only daughter she had and the only person who could take care her. So, Dora's mother had to hurry to the city where grandma lived where was very far.

It was then that the routine changed at Dora's house. Her father would wake her up in the morning but time was short on all activities and Dora had to do a lot of things on her own. In the afternoon after school, she had lunch at her neighbor's house (who was willing to help them) and spent the whole afternoon there until her father arrived earlier in the evening.

At first Dora even liked it. She thought she would be free to do whatever she wanted. But it did not quite happen. At her neighbor's house, she had to do the schoolwork herself and had difficulties. After a few days, she had no more clean uniforms and had to wear a used one. The neighbor's food was very different. She did not like it but she had to eat so she would not be hungry.

Before long, Dora missed her mother. She talked to her on the phone but she could not go back because grandma was still very ill.

The days passed and Dora felt more and more homesick. At bedtime, she even cried thinking about mom. Now that she was without her, Dora could see more clearly how good it was to have someone around us who loves us, protects us, cares for us and cares about our safety, health and well-being.

Dora also remembered the conversation with her father and now she could better understand the instruction "Honor father and mother". She knew her mother was also fulfilling this command, going help grandma while she was sick.

After almost a month, fortunately grandma got better and her mother was able to go home. On the day of her arrival, Dora went with her father to meet mother at the bus station. She hugged her so tightly it seemed she was not going to let her go any more.

Mother thought Dora was pretty and even grown up. But she was different too. From that day on, her father never had to worry about her behavior toward mom.

Translation:
Larissa Martine - larissa_am@hotmail.com

marcelapradacontato@gmail.com