By Jane Pinel

As proud parents, you have given the world a small miracle, a baby. Provided with all the necessary equipment to maintain his health and growth, he also comes with a software program call DNA which determines who he is as a person. Not only does it program his hair and eye color, his stature and even foot size but also his personality. If you already have one child you will soon notice that this second child is different in many ways. With a new baby, the first thing you will notice is how much sleep you do or don’t get when you first bring your infant home from the hospital. The second thing is how hungry your new baby is. How often does he want to nurse? Is he fussy or is he calm?

As the months go by your child will learn more and more about his world and how to cope with it. He will learn to walk and then learn to talk and communicate with others. At the same time you will be learning much about him. When he falls down does he get up and try again? Does he have perseverance and determination? If you have a dog or a cat does your little one show empathy for your pet? Does he show curiosity? Does he want answers for his questions?

As he grows older what are his interests? Does he listen to music? Does he show rhythm? Is he interested in understanding why everything works, why the bumblebee can fly, why horses wear shoes, and why he has to finish his carrots at dinner? As he grows older and you are aware of his interests, help him explore those areas. As he is exposed to more and more of the world his interests will become more focused.

Here are the stories of three children as told to me by their parents, describing how they watched and guided their children into successful paths in life.

While my children were growing up, we had neighbors next door who had three boys. Two were already grown and living away from home and working successfully. The third boy was living at home and often playing with my children. It was a pleasure to have him come to our house. He was full of creative ideas and obviously enjoyed being with people. One night he arranged a theater in our driveway with his home movie projector and showed the whole neighborhood a movie. He loved pretending he was Superman. He was polite and respectful. I was curious so one day while I was having morning coffee with my neighbor I asked her, “You and your husband seem to have done such a good job bringing up your three boys. Joe seems to be such a nice happy kid, full of ideas and fun to be with. What rules did you follow as a parent?” She smiled and took a sip of coffee. “Well, aside from making sure he learns his manners and is respectful, I let him do whatever he wants as long as it’s safe and legal. Joe was always a happy friendly baby and of course I keep an eye on what he was up to.” Joe ended up working for the state department in the field of diplomacy.

I was introduced to a young man, Daniel, who was born with Down Syndrome. As his mother watched him grow, she noticed his interest in anything that made the sounds of music. She was also a musician. With encouragement and music lessons, Daniel became very proficient on the marimba. At age 18, he won the national Itzhak Perlman Very Special Arts Young Soloist Award and Scholarship, presented during his concert at Van Wezel Hall in Sarasota, Florida. Daniel has given many concerts since then, traveling internationally.

My third example is my own grandson who as a child gathered all the cords and computers in the house to satisfy his need to create and understand wireless electronics. Three generations of inventors before him on both sides of his family are reflected in his genes. He now has six patents of his own for electronic inventions.

I encourage every parent to watch and listen to your child’s DNA software. These are powerful directives within him that can be strong motivators in choosing a fulfilling path in life.