Life’s Longing
On Children
Kahlil Gibran
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow,
which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them,
but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children
as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite,
and He bends you with His might
that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies,
so He loves also the bow that is stable.
pieces of me 
Reblogged this on An Empty Glass and commented:
You can’t express the truth better than this. A great piece of work.
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I’ve read and reread this over the years. I tried to raise my children up to be their own. I don’t own them, and I can’t tell them how to be. I only want them to be happy in their choices.
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You must be a wonderful parent for them. ❤
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Well, I try. 🙂
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“Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.” This part really struck a chord with me! Desire is the catalyst for creation. Or at least it seems that way to me. This entire poem was a “winner” though. Thanks so much 🙂
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Thank you. I love this poem so much. It really resonated for me when my daughter was tiny and now that she is a teenager and finding her independence it is even more meaningful. 🙂
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Wise words!
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So wise. ❤
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‘Our children are life’s longing for Itself’. I have loved the words for so many years now. I try to remember this while raising mine.
Beautiful, how you brought this back to me…
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Gibran wrote such sacred poetry. Beautiful!
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a magnificent and well chosen piece by one of the world’s greatest authors
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Thank you Eddie. I have loved this one since the time I first read it. I’ve always felt it was a beautifully written how-to guide to raising my daughter 🙂
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Reblogged this on Bobbi's Blog.
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My mother always said, Dieu vous a été prêté…You are both here only for a period, to nurture, to love and educate and let you go. She never made me feel obliged to her although I was so close to her. I`ve tried to do the same with my children.
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Your mom sounds wonderful, and you have obviously taken a page from her book. ❤
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I hope so:)
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Reblogged this on Diona's Family Affair and commented:
Beautiful.
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Reblogged on Diona’s Family Affair
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Thank you so much for the reblog, Diona!
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I never wanted children because I simply don’t like them….
unless I can pick them up at noon, take them to the Zoo, and drop them off at mom & dad’s at 6:00………LOL
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That’s called being an Uncle… or a grandparent 🙂 Valid choice, my friend.
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Very nice words and Beautiful Picture, thank you very much Brenda….💗💗💗
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Thank you ! 🙂
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This is so beautiful. This is just lovely!
I so believe in this. Loved it! Beautifully expressed!
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❤ Thank you so much, Priyanki!
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His poetry found a place in my heart when I was very young and he has cared exceptionally well for that place over the years. I couldn’t have asked for a finer tenant.
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Love, love, love this one. I’ve included it with every gift I give to new parents for the past 25 years!! This is the single piece of writing that has most guided my parenting.
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It is one of my favorites, too. Perfect expression of what it means to parent well.
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