In Korea, May 5th is Children’s Day (a national holiday). I think every country should have a children’s day. In South Korea, it is day for children to spend with their parents and often involves family outings. This particular holiday began in 1923.

Here is a day that can be just for the children. It’s a day to show the children how important they are to the world. Sometimes, as parents, I think we get so tied up in making things come together – working to save for their college or the shoes that they need for soccer lessons, etc… that we forget to tell them that they are important. To us, it would seem like it was self-explanatory because why else would we be working so hard for them, but to them it might seem like we are just working hard. So, here’s a day that we can shed away all of those things just to be together.

"Children are the future of our nation. Let's show respect
for children. Children who grow up with ridicule and
contempt from others will become people who disrespect
others, while children who grow up with respect from
others will become people who respect others in turn."
-Pang Chong-hwan, founder of Korean Children's Day

I was going to come up with a list of things that you could do to celebrate this day, but the possibilities are just endless. So, instead, I think it would be better if you made your own list. Better yet, it would be best if your whole family sat down and made a list together.

Another thing that you can use this day to do is celebrate all children. During the major holidays people remember the children. We see red kettles in front of stores and see trees decorated with names of children who need presents, but what happens during the other 11 months of the year? Do you have time to join a Big Brother/Big Sister group? Are you able to write a check to a local group? How you do it isn’t important – some people are hands on and some people aren’t.

Celebrate the children!