by Silvestro Lega (1826–1895)
Do not ask your children
to strive for extraordinary lives.
Such striving may seem admirable,
but it is the way of foolishness.
Help them instead to find the wonder
and the marvel of an ordinary life.
Show them the joy of tasting
tomatoes, apples and pears.
Show them how to cry
when pets and people die.
Show them the infinite pleasure
in the touch of a hand.
And make the ordinary come alive for them.
The extraordinary will take care of itself.
― William Martin, The Parent's Tao Te Ching: Ancient Advice for Modern Parents
Sources:
[1] Original image from Wikimedia.
[2] The Real Victorian's digitally enhanced version of the painting (seen above), downloadable as a 8" x 12" @ 300 ppi JPEG.
Digitally enhanced reproductions of public domain paintings are shared under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.