【文章內(nèi)容簡介】 is only half the story. the other half is preparing the children to reaccept their parents.
　　when i was very young i remember that we had this crazy mutt of a dog named amp。quot。black girl,amp。quot。 a mix of wolf and retriever. not only wasnamp。39。t she much of a guard dog, she was such a scared and nervous thing that it is a wonder she did not pass out every time a truck rumbled by, or a thunderstorm swept through indiana. my sister janet and i gave that dog so much love, but we never really won back the sense of trust that had been stolen from her by her previous owner. we knew he used to beat her. we didnamp。39。t know with what. but whatever it was, it was enough to suck the spirit right out of that dog.
　　a lot of kids today are hurt puppies who have weaned themselves off the need for love. they couldnamp。39。t care less about their parents. left to their own devices, they cherish their independence. they have moved on and have left their parents behind.
　　then there are the far worse cases of children who harbor animosity and resentment toward their parents, so that any overture that their parents might undertake would be thrown forcefully back in their face.
　　tonight, i donamp。39。t want any of us to make this mistake. thatamp。39。s why iamp。39。m calling upon all the worldamp。39。s children amp。ndash。 beginning with all of us here tonight amp。ndash。 to forgive our parents, if we felt neglected. forgive them and teach them how to love again.
　　you probably werenamp。39。t surprised to hear that i did not have an idyllic childhood. the strain and tension that exists in my relationship with my own father is well documented. my father is a tough man and he pushed my brothers and me hard, from the earliest age, to be the best performers we could be.
　　he had great difficulty showing affection. he never really told me he loved me. and he never really plimented me either. if i did a great show, he would tell me it was a good show. and if i did an ok show, he told me it was a lousy show.
　　he seemed intent, above all else, on making us a mercial success. and at that he was more than adept. my father was a managerial genius and my brothers and i owe our professional success, in no small measure, to the forceful way that he pushed us. he trained me as a showman and under his guidance i couldnamp。39。t miss a step.
　　but what i really wanted was a dad. i wanted a father who showed me love. and my father never did that. he never said i love you while looking me straight in the eye, he never played a game with me. he never gave me a piggyback ride, he never threw a pillow at me, or a water balloon.
　　but i remember once when i was about four years old, there was a little carnival and he picked me up and put me on a pony. it was a tiny gesture, probably something he forgot five minutes later. but because of that moment i have this special place in my heart for him. because thatamp。39。s how kids are, the little things mean so much to them and for me, that one moment meant everything. i only experienced it that one time, but it made me feel really good, about him and the world.
　　but now i am a father myself, and one day i was thinking about my own children, prince and paris and how i wanted them to think of me when they grow up. to be sure, i would like them to remember how i always wanted them with me wherever i went, how i always tried to put them before everything else. but there are also challenges in their lives. because my kids are stalked by paparazzi, they canamp。39。t always go to a park or a movie with me.
　　so what if they grow older and resent me, and how my choices impacted their youth? why werenamp。39。t we given an average childhood like all the other kids, they might ask? and at that moment i pray tha