Parenting Through the Eyes of a Child: Memoirs of My Childhood

By Tabitha Ochekpe Omeiza

If your child was asked to judge your parenting, what grade would you receive?
In this memoir, the author looks back at her childhood growing up in Bukuru in the north-central part of Nigeria - and she gives her parents high marks.
In sharing memories of her childhood, she reveals how her parents raised her, served as role models, took every opportunity to teach, disciplined her and much more. The stories she shares range from funny to serious and will keep you turning the pages. There is something for everyone in this book; parents and children.
Being a parent is not easy, but you can forge a healthier and happier relationship with your child or children by looking at Parenting, through the eyes of a child.

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse UK
• Release date: Jul 5, 2017
• ISBN: 9781524682842

Tabitha Ochekpe Omeiza

Tabitha Ochekpe Omeiza is a daughter, wife, mother, sister, friend, and much more. She lives in Sheffield in the United Kingdom and works as community pharmacist. In her local church, she teaches the Mighty Ones which is a youth group for 12 to 18 year olds. She has a passion for teaching and enjoys sharing knowledge with others. She is married to Joseph Omeiza, and together they have a daughter, Alicia.

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© 2017 Tabitha Ochekpe Omeiza. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Scriptures taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Published by AuthorHouse 07/04/2017

ISBN: 978-1-5246-8285-9 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5246-8284-2 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Foreword

Acknowledgements

Preface

Chapter 1 Invest

Chapter 2 A Little about Me

Chapter 3 Persevere

Chapter 4 Mummy 1

Chapter 5 Connect

Chapter 6 Stay Tuned In

Chapter 7 Faith

Chapter 8 Distance

Chapter 9 Teach Always

Chapter 10 Service

Chapter 11 Every Girl Needs a Secure Dad

Chapter 12 Evolve

Chapter 13 Dear Parents

Glossary

This book is

dedicated to my parents Professor Nelson Ochekpe and Mrs Sarah Reng Ochekpe, and to Mummy 1, Mrs Ruth Reng Mohammed. Thank you for training me in the way I should go.

FOREWORD

Like a stellar comet, it is not very often you come in contact with a book this simple and yet profound. I bet you wouldn’t expect a ‘child’ to write about parenting; you would expect a professor of psychology or sociology or maybe even an accomplished grandparent to. However, through this book, Tabitha has given us a most often neglected set of lenses through which to look at parenting: the eyes of the parented. This is an interesting view on this quite essential topic of parenting, which has left many parents confused, families destroyed, and the lives of many youths shipwrecked.

I have known Tabitha Ochekpe Omeiza since she was a young teenager, having had the privilege to be her youth pastor at Family Worship Centre, and she has always been an outstanding young lady with an amiable personality. Reading this book helped answer some questions that usually arose within me when I observed her calmness, sense of purpose, love for God, and a balanced life that avoided extremes; she exemplifies the power of purposeful and godly parenting. Incidentally, I have known her parents for several years and can attest that it is impossible for such an outstanding couple not to produce a purpose-driven, sweet-natured, and intelligent young lady like Tabitha.

I have been a parent for thirteen years (and a pastor to many spiritual children for over fifteen years) and can confidently say that this book is a must read for anybody who wants to understand the simple art of purpose-driven and loving parenting without all the academic grandiloquence and jargon. It is easy to read; the author’s childhood stories are really interesting, and she’s taken the time to paint a captivating picture of the settings in which she grew up, which will bring fond memories to anyone with a familiarity with those Nigerian cities. The humour of the adventure of her childhood is captivating, the mystery of parents’ all-seeing eyes and all-knowing minds is still unsolved, and the pithy truth put forth in this book is instructive to both old and young. All parents will see themselves in this book, and the mischievousness of childhood can be found on every page too.

Reading the book, I began to reappraise my own parenting methods. I have thought about what my sons and daughter would say if they were to write about my parenting in years to come and made adjustments. Actually, I once stopped in between chapters and decided to have an evening out with my seven-year-old daughter at the games arcade, in spite of my busy schedule. That’s what the book will do to you. It is not just a bunch of highfalutin information; it is simple, it is instructive, it is timeless truth.

I highly recommend for every household’s library, PARENTING: THROUGH THE EYES OF A CHILD.

Blessings!

Wale Afelumo

Lead Pastor

Inspiration Life Community Church

Abuja, Nigeria

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am grateful to God for blessing me with wonderful parents and giving them life, health and strength to raise me. I thank God for the idea to write this book and for making it a reality.

Thank you to my husband, Joe whom I first told about this idea and who has supported me every step of the way, reading every single thing I have written. God bless you Sweety.

Special thanks to my friend for life; Demilade Gbenle who read through and edited my manuscript.

Thank you to my mum who has read this manuscript several times. Editing it and reminding me of some parts to stories I wanted to share but could not fully remember.

Thank you Danie my brother for reading and editing and also giving me concepts and Ideas. Thank you for letting me share your stories as well.

Special thanks to the Mighty Ones of Victory Assembly Sheffield. You are all inspirational.

Thank you Yemi Katai, for all your photocopying and scanning and general running around for this project.

Thank you to the team that worked on this project at Author House Publishing.

And to everyone who I told about this idea, who supported, encouraged and prayed for me. I couldn’t possibly write down all your names. But from he depth of my heart, I am truly grateful.

PREFACE

In primary school, we are taught that family is the smallest unit of society. It is usually said that strong families make strong societies. Everyone comes from a family. As the years go by, family systems and structures appear to be getting weaker. The family as we used to know it appears under threat.

Personally, I feel that there is a link between the break down of the family and some of the behavioural challenges we see in society today.

Working with young people in my local church, Victory Assembly in Sheffield, and having the opportunity to observe various parent and child relationships around, I have reflected on how I was raised by my parents and what effects that had on me as an adult. Though perfect is