Reason # 5 KIDS: Jeandre & Minette
As I’ve said many times before, this blog is about blessings (Reasons why my life has been such a gift)—and when it comes to blessings, all others pale in comparison to the blessing my two children are to me.
I’ll write more about them later, but for now, I just want to say this:
As a lecturer and later Associate Professor, I have dedicated my life to learning and teaching—especially with the hope of making knowledge (qualifications) more accessible and affordable to many. And as a social entrepreneur, I’ve done my best to help build a world that is kinder, more just, and more joyful. But by far, my greatest joy, my truest accomplishment, is found in you—my children, Jeandré and Minette.
Jeandré, with your calm intellect and curious spirit, and Minette, with your luminous brilliance and compassionate heart—you are engineers not only of data but of dreams. You build bridges not just in code, but between people, possibilities, and futures I once only imagined.
Watching you grow into professionals, who shape the world with such intention and grace, has been one of the greatest joys of my life. In you, I see the continuation of all I hold dear: the pursuit of knowledge, the courage to innovate, and the fierce, quiet commitment to making the world better than you found it.
Perhaps my life was dedicated to dreams and ideals—and the few I’ve been lucky enough to live. But this post is for you. You are my legacy, my inspiration, and my daily reminder that love and learning can echo through generations.
And finally, I believe one cannot speak of children without referring to that marvelous book The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran—so profound, yet expressed in such simple, everyday language, and in a deeply poetic way.
Most chapters in The Prophet begin with: “Speak to us of…” and with just those few words, we are forever captivated.
Gibran wrote of children:
“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...
As a loving parent in the modern world, I see Gibran’s wisdom as a guiding light in this age of rapid change, uncertainty, and individuality. We try to offer our children stability, values, and unconditional love, even as they forge their own paths—shaped by influences, technologies, and challenges we may never fully grasp.
Rather than molding children into reflections of our own hopes or fears, the loving parent must nurture curiosity, resilience, and authenticity—trusting that their child’s future belongs not to replication, but to evolution, and most of all, to the spark they carry in their own souls.
The parent’s task is not direction, but support. Strength, not control. And the willingness to let their children fly toward a tomorrow only they can know.
Every day remains another opportunity for me to try and do this well.
My dear friend Gavin once said, “It must be wonderful to experience your children as adults.” And how right he is.
I never sought to be perfect in my children’s eyes—but how meaningful it is now to share the joys and burdens of the adult world together.
And then, one of the greatest gifts of all: love of children is a love that keeps on giving. Through Jeandré and Minette, I have gained two more beautiful souls as children in Nancy and Altus. I can’t wait to share the blessing all of them are—to me and to so many others—today and in the days to come.
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