<p class="bodytext">My niece—we’ll call her Mini—is a very intelligent child. She is just six years old, but she is a precocious child at this tender age. A few days ago, she did something that greatly surprised everyone in the family. Mini’s father was fond of playing online video games. He would spend a lot of time playing online games well into midnight. This would disturb the sleep of Mini and her family.</p>.<p class="bodytext">All the persuasions of Mini’s mother helped only to pause her father’s bad habit. But old habits die hard. The ‘addiction’ relapsed after a few days. Mini’s father went back to his old ways, becoming once again a late-night video game ‘warrior’. This was a big blow for the family.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The family doubled its efforts to bring Mini’s father out of this habit, but to no avail. The habit was so deeply ingrained that it was almost impossible for the family to wean him away from late-night bouts of video games.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Things came to such a pass that it started affecting little Mini and her family’s sleep cycle, unleashing a domino effect. Since Mini did not sleep <br />well at night, she would often wake up late and reach school late. As if that weren’t enough, she kept yawning in class and seemed too sleepy to pay attention. It also impacted her academic performance.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Mini was a studious girl, but her downhill slide in academics made the class teacher worried. A few days ago, Mini’s school announced the parent-teacher meeting schedule. Normally, Mini’s mother would attend the meet, but this time Mini prevailed upon her father to attend the meet. Mini’s father made time from his busy schedule and came to the school on the appointed day.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The teacher lodged a litany of complaints against Mini, especially about her poor grades and the bad habit of yawning in class. The moment the teacher stopped talking, Mini rose to say her side of the story. She told her teacher that she was innocent and the real culprit was her father!</p>.<p class="bodytext">She further added that he would keep her awake till midnight as he kept playing online video games. She, very innocently, requested her teacher to impose a heavy fine on her father, and even after that, if he did not mend his ways, he should be handed over to the police. Mini’s words stunned everyone present in the room. Though they all burst out into a loud guffaw, it was a moment of reckoning for Mini’s father. He was embarrassed and frozen with his eyes downcast.</p>.<p class="bodytext">But it changed him. He promised not to play online games till midnight, a promise he kept. This was how Mini brought her father onto the ‘right track’. Never underestimate the power of a daughter. She can ‘fix’ anything, even an erring father!</p>
<p class="bodytext">My niece—we’ll call her Mini—is a very intelligent child. She is just six years old, but she is a precocious child at this tender age. A few days ago, she did something that greatly surprised everyone in the family. Mini’s father was fond of playing online video games. He would spend a lot of time playing online games well into midnight. This would disturb the sleep of Mini and her family.</p>.<p class="bodytext">All the persuasions of Mini’s mother helped only to pause her father’s bad habit. But old habits die hard. The ‘addiction’ relapsed after a few days. Mini’s father went back to his old ways, becoming once again a late-night video game ‘warrior’. This was a big blow for the family.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The family doubled its efforts to bring Mini’s father out of this habit, but to no avail. The habit was so deeply ingrained that it was almost impossible for the family to wean him away from late-night bouts of video games.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Things came to such a pass that it started affecting little Mini and her family’s sleep cycle, unleashing a domino effect. Since Mini did not sleep <br />well at night, she would often wake up late and reach school late. As if that weren’t enough, she kept yawning in class and seemed too sleepy to pay attention. It also impacted her academic performance.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Mini was a studious girl, but her downhill slide in academics made the class teacher worried. A few days ago, Mini’s school announced the parent-teacher meeting schedule. Normally, Mini’s mother would attend the meet, but this time Mini prevailed upon her father to attend the meet. Mini’s father made time from his busy schedule and came to the school on the appointed day.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The teacher lodged a litany of complaints against Mini, especially about her poor grades and the bad habit of yawning in class. The moment the teacher stopped talking, Mini rose to say her side of the story. She told her teacher that she was innocent and the real culprit was her father!</p>.<p class="bodytext">She further added that he would keep her awake till midnight as he kept playing online video games. She, very innocently, requested her teacher to impose a heavy fine on her father, and even after that, if he did not mend his ways, he should be handed over to the police. Mini’s words stunned everyone present in the room. Though they all burst out into a loud guffaw, it was a moment of reckoning for Mini’s father. He was embarrassed and frozen with his eyes downcast.</p>.<p class="bodytext">But it changed him. He promised not to play online games till midnight, a promise he kept. This was how Mini brought her father onto the ‘right track’. Never underestimate the power of a daughter. She can ‘fix’ anything, even an erring father!</p>
