“While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.” ~Angela Schwindt
A three-year-old girl was attempting to play with her older brothers who were messing around with swords. The mother didn’t know why she was bothering her brothers’ boyish fun, and was tempted to redirect her to something more suitable. In that moment, however, she caught herself. She went on to say, “Instead of reasoning, I met her in her world.”
The daughter had a toy snake in her hand, and the mother moved next to her and suggested that maybe she could use it as a sword. She played along with her daughter’s imaginative impulses, and validated her in the process.
Mom parked her Yes But, and played with Yes And! What a gift to her daughter!
Imagine the impact we have on children (and ourselves for that matter) when we enforce years of reasoning on them. We do not give them the benefit of the doubt to know what is best, and stunt their imagination and innocence in the process.
Where in your life are you reasoning instead of playing along? Where are you deciding for instead of discovering with?
By playing along with children in their world, we are reminded how much we can learn from them. They teach us that we don’t have to control everything, and playfully show us where to go.
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Related Reading:
Flour Play
Don’t Decide, Discover
Related Training:
Remembering to Play ~ Inspiring Joy, Freedom & Self-Care