Who filled your cup?
Janat Yahaya Naggolola
Certified parenting coach and character development expert .
During a recent conversation with learners at Trek Vocational and Secondary School, Kibuli, one truth came up again and again. Every young person is carrying something, and most adults never see it.
Every young person walks around with a cup. That cup is filled, or left running low, by parents, teachers, friends, faith, mentors and community. What fills that cup explains far more about a child’s behaviour and choices than any report card.
Behaviour is rarely the real story. A young person who seems distracted, withdrawn or difficult is usually not looking for trouble. They are missing something, and they do not yet have the words to say so.
Education alone does not raise a whole person. Young people also need love, emotional safety, encouragement, guidance, a role model, a sense of belonging and purpose. When these are missing, they go looking for them elsewhere, sometimes in the wrong friendships, sometimes online.
Many young people carry an invisible backpack packed with rejection, comparison, family conflict, fear of failure and low self-esteem. No one chooses their past or the gaps in their childhood. But every young person can choose their values, their friendships and their response to what happened to them.
What made the conversation at Trek stand out was not the topic alone. It was the discipline and sense of responsibility the learners showed while engaging with it, proof that young people rise to meet honest conversation when it is offered to them.
Raising confident, purpose driven young people was never meant to rest on parents alone. Teachers, mentors, guardians and community all share that responsibility.
A young person cannot rewrite their past. But with the right support, they can write a stronger next chapter, one built on character over excuses, discipline over convenience and purpose over popularity.
Share this with the young person in your life, and with the parent, teacher or guardian who needs to read it too.
PS: I work with parents, guardians, educators and schools to intentionally bridge parenting and nurturing gaps in young people, through practical, faith rooted and psychologically informed mentorship.
Reach out:
+256772858289 / +256704796915
MYNDPATH INSTITUTE
of Character and Capacity Development
Empowering Minds. Shaping Character. Transforming Futures.
