Young children are relentless. They are persistent. They are focused. They absolutely never give up.
When we work with young children, it’s not uncommon to hear, “learn something new every day!” Often this is tongue-in-cheek, those anecdotes which make Reader’s Digest, “The orange crayons taste the best,” or something about how quickly, quietly, and high children can climb, something along the lines of “kids say the darndest things.”
But they do teach us, daily.
Their tenacity is humbling.
How many resolutions have been forgotten before the 31st, “I like me this way.” How many opportunities are met with, “I could never do that.” Unfathomable goals get a wide-eyed “Wow, okay.” response.
When we achieve something, we’re done. Phew, I lost all that weight, now I can go back to how I really like to eat. Or we’re just looking to bide time until the next milestone. Just gotta make it through Valentine’s, then I can relax. Can’t wait until it’s Summer!
Perhaps we fear failure, or even discomfort. Perhaps we’re wary of pain. Perhaps we’re worried about judgement whispers or unpleasant comments. Just me?
A child doesn’t respond to challenges in the same way. A child doesn’t give up on learning to walk with a shrug and a “I like me this way.” A child doesn’t wish to be done learning to read so they can just relax a little. A child doesn’t look forward to the weekend to have a bit of a break from fine motor development.
A child is fierce. And somewhere along the line, we fall a bit too far, maybe too hard, a few too many times, and that doubt creeps in. “I can’t” is a loud voice pushing us toward complacency and worry. No matter our fear — judgement, failure, change — the trepidation is the same. We look, and often don’t even leap.
The children teach us every day we are worth the risk. We should take chances on ourselves. We should be ferocious in our drive for learning and self-improvement. Dive headfirst into that which is pulling us toward it like the Sun, be it meditation or professional development or self-care, and give it our all. And then, set a new goal, and go headlong into that, too.
The children also teach us that there might be tears. We WILL fall, we might even split our chin on the coffee table in the search for finding our legs. But the strength is within us, and the successes far outweigh the risks, and we have these people to keep us company along the way. Never give up.
Baan Dek
An incredible Montessori foundation for children and an inspirational resource for teachers and parents.