Fourth Quarter 2001 Newsletter (Last Updated On: ) Photo credit: Pekka Elomaa Research carried out recently in Finland, my home country, indicated that a person who has experienced injustice once in his or her life is more susceptible to mental ill health than others. Injustice can occur in the childhood home, in the family, at school, within a marriage, at the workplace, and at the government level – anywhere. The shocking thing is that such an experience can affect someone so strongly that his or her personal balance can be swayed towards sickness. This research also made me think about how our children – the foundation of our future – can develop as healthy, balanced children experiencing justice. One looks automatically at the models – ourselves – offered to them at home. The foundation upon which a child grows is formed, to a great extent, by our own behavior as well as by our environment. I have tried to develop here some central themes from the point of view of a child’s healthy upbringing. I challenge you, the readers, to participate in the discussion. I believe that one of the main things from a child’s viewpoint is the guarantee of security. This means economic and social as well as psychological security. The aim of child rearing is to increase the child’s knowledge but to present the information in such a way that the child can discover things for himself or herself and gain insight. Children can be educated about justice through rewards, not just punishment. Currently considerable thought is given to ways of providing discipline, but many of these ways only serve to make children feel guilty. How can we turn discipline into reward and support? A start might be to respect the child as a person – in need of sufficient protection, but also an individual beginning a life of his or her own. People bringing up children are expected to be sincere and genuine. I assume that everyone rearing a child wants that child to be happy. We, together with our children, must decide what we understand by happiness. It is good to remember that there is no limit to happiness. If we ourselves do not know what is enough, we are constantly seeking more. Raising a child requires permanent human relationships, a safety net of loved ones who are there for the child. I also believe that a child is good at heart. What a child becomes is the result of its environment, as well as the hard knocks in life. Listening carefully to a child, however, guarantees that he or she will be understood – and increases the chances that he or she will be treated justly. When working with children it does not pay to give too much too soon, in case we risk undermining their security. Showing love and setting limits simultaneously is not an overwhelming challenge if one bears in mind what a mother or father does. Understanding and remembering one’s own parents’ role is a vital guide to child rearing, contributing to the family’s set of values and viewpoints. There is a nursery rhyme in Finland which states that a child is made of sugar and spice. The central theme attracts me. It symbolizes a good child – as all children are originally. The status of a child varies from one culture to another, and every culture has basic principles of child rearing. The transfer of good child-rearing principles from one culture to another, and the adoption of sound practices, is a great challenge. It is part of mental health work; it provides for an enduring future for mankind. Pirkko Lahti Fourth Quarter 2001 Newsletter