What has your child taught you lately?

Christine Gooding — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 04:41:01 +0000

Parents aren’t the only teachers in the family. We can learn from the kids in our household too.

Little Billy moving his upside-down water back and forth across his high-chair’s table? Yep, the table’s quite a mess with drops of water here and there. But look at his face! The joy of discovering how a cup smoothly slides across a flat surface is thrilling him. Such a little thing for us, but a big discovery for him. What are the little things we’ve ignored lately? Perhaps there are big discoveries we’re missing out on.

Image credit: Savannah Grandfather

Tamara’s on the phone again. She talks for hours with her friend Jana, who she goes to school with. They ride the bus to school together, share most of their classes together, and after school, talk on the phone. You wonder what more they could talk about when they’ve been together the whole day. When was the last time you reconnected with your best friend? Perhaps you can take inspiration from Tamara and have a long chat with her too.

Patricia’s savoring her peanut butter and jelly sandwich. She’s eating her snack so slowly, as if she’s examining every crumb and flavor in her mouth. She declares it to be “the best sandwich ever!” and resumes playtime. When was the last time you savored a snack at home and not in a five-star restaurant? Perhaps you can find gourmet goodness in even the simplest of sandwiches at home.

There are a lot of things that we can learn from our kids. They often don’t come in thunderous announcements, just in the little things your kids do. So open your eyes and see — what has your child taught you lately?