parenting might be the hardest thing on earth

i was watching this "flash card memorising" training for babies on RTHK.
parents "force" their little ones memorising all these vocabs when they are very little.
i haven't a clue if this would really work.
it wouldn't have worked on me obviously, i just watched it 15 mins ago and have forgot the proper name of the method already.
but printing out all those vocabs on paper and putting in so much effort producing something that would only last for a couple of days seems to be a bit environment-unfriendly to me.
even though it's all based on good incentives and motivations - to help their kids to learn.
seeing a 2-year-old having such a big vocab not only surprises me but also scares me.
when i was 2, i was just a lazy kid, lying around in the cot or screaming my head off like crazy all day long, i might have chewed on various mysterious objects as well, ripped apart my dad's books, journals and newspapers etc.
mum had gone back to work already, and i didn't have a baby sitter to follow me around 24/7.
so where on earth did i pick up all those random vocabs?
i really don't know.

though i reckon one thing that is more important is role-modelling.
if you were put in an environment where all the surroundings include no tv, no computer, no hi-tech stuff, no flashy expensive toys, but big old shelves of books, obviously, you'd have no choice but to read.
if your parents constantly read and talk about positive things at home that would actually have a postive influence on you as well.
i'm not saying that getting into good kinddies/schools doesn't matter.
on the contrary, as long as you still live on the Earth, it would still matter a hell lot where you go for schooling.
well, unless your parents are willing to do home-schooling and don't mind you not getting any tertiary education at all.

so, to have a loving family, to show your kids that you care, to read more often with/for your children, to spend more time with them matter a lot more than starting training them while they're barely walking.
i'm not sure whether it's money that's the driving force of all this craze (for both sides, in the long run).
but i do hope that we could get back to square one and be a bit old-fashioned.
just spend more time with your kids, that alone, would improve their school performance.
i guess it's easier said than done, especially for me.