Ideally, self esteem is first nurtured by the caring mother and father. The home environment, including siblings, add to the positive influences on the infantile intelligence which can be set for attunment with what is good, beautiful and true in life.
In real life, however, nursing self esteem in a child meets obstacles, slight or strong. The child himself may have physical deficiencies, such as in the case of autistic children. There is also the complex combination of racial, social, and economic difficulties. In China, the female child is unwanted. In India, the caste system determines the child's place in society as a noble or as a pariah or shunned outcast.
Not very few are illegitmate children, and realization of being illegitimate can create an unseen streak in personality. The flaw in character may not be immediately be seen, but this can be manifested later on in life when the child is a grown husband or wife, a worker or professional, or simply a grown person.
Alchoholics and habitual drug users may well examine possible influences which can be traced by way of genetics, heritage or family upbringing.
But there are stories, even made into unforgettable movies, of children who recovered the lost treasure of parent and home. The movie "Always in my Heart," tells how a child whose father was in prison was denied by the mother the knowledge that her father was really alive. The odd circumstances in the film leading to a happy reunion was deeply stirring.
From the family, the self starts his journey and treks to his life's goals with a spiritual pack on his back.
Let the human family thrive!
