It is my wish in this new year to inspire your journeys of warmth, hope, and the glow of the blessings of childhood, of teen years, of what your communications with children can bring to YOU.
As parents, educators, grandparents and caregivers, so much of the way we think of our caretaking is in terms of what WE can do for those for whom we care. But in truth, the lessons of childhood are for us all. The lessons of teenhood. Somewhere inside each of us is that same person we always were. Inside that teenager is the same baby who tilted her head towards you in the first days after birth. We walk around with our hearts pounding for the sheer joy, worry and excitement of life. A Lit Life is a life enriched by children, by the raising of, teaching of, children who influence us, are our greatest teachers. They light us from within. I will in this new year explore the terrain of learning to read, reading to learn, the new technologies which will transform how we understand what it means to communicate, to write, to “only connect”, as EM Forster said.
Today’s learnings:
1. The most perfect gifts are made by nature.
Charlotte, beloved daughter, holds up a perfect luminous garlic from her Aunties’ garden. Like an orb from another planet, its translucence is transcendent.
2. We are never too old to play.
Grandma still makes a stocking for her granddaughters at the holiday season.
3. Attention to details matters.
Grandpa takes his time with his cookies. They are a work of art and delight each and every year.