Father-Son/ Young-Old
As a father and a son, I was quickly drawn into this remarkable work of Hosseini. As I read chapters 3 and 4, I began to re-live my days as a son to my late father. It brought back similar feelings at times. After so long, it all seems to make sense to me - sounds credible and ok!
In Page 18, for a young boy to wish that "all children died along with their parents" only shows how much he missed his father. This portion reminds me of my son constantly telling me with a smile on his face about how committed I am to my work so much so that I have more time for my worksheets than for him. NEGLECT in all that I do. A teaching point! No matter how much we do for our children, if we don't have the time factor in their lives, it amounts to nothing! Honestly! Think about the saying "the best gift one can give his children is time." Something BABA didn't give Amir! (“I was learning about father from others” and “Envious, but happy”).
Amir eavesdrops on his dad. I am still wondering how he could stomach such things – a mere 8 year old! Not only does he now know that his father thinks little of him but he has to live with the fact that his father sees nothing of him (Baba) in Amir. I put myself in Amir’s shoes and if anything I would want to remember that evening by would definitely be those 3 resounding words - “Envious, but happy”. At least (or should I say, at last), Baba is happy because of Amir!!
I believe that because the story is written in retrospect most of the feelings conjured in writing are a bit exaggerated. Is a child capable of such thoughts “killing” etc? I don’t know. But this much I know, he was afraid of Hassan – or rather sees Hassan as a challenge. Baba out rightly adored Hassan and had compared his behaviours with that of Amir’s. Probably that was why Amir often avoided reading poems as Hassan could decipher them easily than Amir could. Or was it just child-play? Again, I don’t know.
Well, a son needs lots of affirmation and love from his parents, especially father. I know it very well, as a father and a son. Hosseini is beginning to teach me through his experiences.
It is like a 2-in-1 book for me!
In Page 18, for a young boy to wish that "all children died along with their parents" only shows how much he missed his father. This portion reminds me of my son constantly telling me with a smile on his face about how committed I am to my work so much so that I have more time for my worksheets than for him. NEGLECT in all that I do. A teaching point! No matter how much we do for our children, if we don't have the time factor in their lives, it amounts to nothing! Honestly! Think about the saying "the best gift one can give his children is time." Something BABA didn't give Amir! (“I was learning about father from others” and “Envious, but happy”).
Amir eavesdrops on his dad. I am still wondering how he could stomach such things – a mere 8 year old! Not only does he now know that his father thinks little of him but he has to live with the fact that his father sees nothing of him (Baba) in Amir. I put myself in Amir’s shoes and if anything I would want to remember that evening by would definitely be those 3 resounding words - “Envious, but happy”. At least (or should I say, at last), Baba is happy because of Amir!!
I believe that because the story is written in retrospect most of the feelings conjured in writing are a bit exaggerated. Is a child capable of such thoughts “killing” etc? I don’t know. But this much I know, he was afraid of Hassan – or rather sees Hassan as a challenge. Baba out rightly adored Hassan and had compared his behaviours with that of Amir’s. Probably that was why Amir often avoided reading poems as Hassan could decipher them easily than Amir could. Or was it just child-play? Again, I don’t know.
Well, a son needs lots of affirmation and love from his parents, especially father. I know it very well, as a father and a son. Hosseini is beginning to teach me through his experiences.
It is like a 2-in-1 book for me!
scribbled by Logan at 9:09 pm
2 Comments:
Hey there, it is indeed a relevant read to you, Log!
I am sure you will know how it feels more than us daughters as fathers always expect differently from their sons, just like how mothers would see their daughters differently. After all, when you are of the same gender, you would expect to see a greater similarity in your off spring.
that's an interesting insight. I'm not sure to agree or not to that as I am the sole offspring. :)
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