I have had the wonderful opportunity to do daycare for a
four year old a few times a week. As I don’t
have children on my own, this is such a delight for me. I get to play with play dough, play pretend,
and sing songs in the car – it’s so much fun.
There have been times when I have heard from people that they don’t know
who is having more fun, me or the little girl.
Doing daycare is one of the highlights of my week; because I learn so
much. Today, I am going to share with
you some life lessons I have learned from a four year old.
I make it a point to tell the little girl I watch that she
is a good at something, if its dancing or coloring or something other than just
how cute she is (because she is adorable.)
Today I told her she is a great dancer and her reply was “I know; it’s
because I like to dance.” I wonder how
old I was when I stopped doing some of the things I love, because I didn’t think
I was good enough.
Life lesson number one: If you like doing it, don’t let others stop you
When we are in the car together we sing, and we sometimes
listen to the radio. I will typically make a fool of myself dancing in the car
to make her laugh and get her dancing to.
I may say that I like a song and her response is “I like this song too.” It may be the first time she has ever heard
the song, but she likes it. When is it
that we stop liking things right off that bat and begin to become hesitant to
dive into something? I think as a
society we tend to think that people are looking to get something from us, so
we put a guard up and make them prove us wrong.
Life lesson number two:
Love everything; don’t waste energy putting up your guard
I didn’t realize when I took this job that I would become a
jungle gym, and everything is something to climb on, sing on, or play hot lava
on. Everything is a game when you are
four. We ice skate on the wood floors,
we sing about what we are going to do that day, had living in the mid-west you
would be amazed at the amount of hot lava that is EVERYWHERE! It is so much fun to see how her brain works
and how we can change everything into a game; even eating breakfast can become
a game. I don’t know if it is when we get
to school and our teachers are totally outnumbered, or when our parents tell us
to calm down, but at one point in our lives everything was a game and we
stopped playing it. When life is a game
you see everything as an opportunity to rescue the princess or fight pirates.
Life lesson number
three: Life is a game, don’t forget to play it
I get so much joy out of watching this little girl’s brain
work and grow. I have been with her for
a few months and I can see the huge steps forward she has made in becoming more
independent, and how just how smart she really is. I also love getting a big hug when she sees
me unexpectedly. Life is too short to
worry about what others think of you, to bring your work life home, and to be
too afraid to try something new. Next
time you see a challenge, try thinking about it the way a four year old would,
you will be amazed at the new ideas you come up with to overcome your obstacle;
and watch out for pirates and hot lava.
You have it all & Confidence,
Lyndsay
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