My three year-old son loves to pretend that he is
different people. Sure, from time-to-time he
pretends that he is a cartoon character, but most
often he likes to pretend that he is one of the real
people in his life.
Some of the recurring characters that he likes to
play are:
Let me explain. "Garbage Man" is the person who
drives the truck that picks up our recycling each
week and Dave and Sue are the janitors at my son's
daycare.
He loves to take our broom and sweep the tile
floor of our kitchen and living room hardwood (a
habit of his that my wife and I are naturally eager
to encourage!). When he is playing this way, he
uses different voices and we MUST call him either "Dave" or "Sue" (depending on which person he is at
the time). After he has swept up, his broom becomes
a make-believe mop and he "mops" the floors, all the
while warning us (using the Dave and Sue voices) not
to slip on the "wet floors".
Watching him play out that simple little scenario
over and over again has taught me many lessons.
Lessons that I'd like to share with you today.
Lesson #1 You never know whom your daily
actions will
impact. I'm sure that Dave and Sue have no idea
that the kind and caring way that they interact with
the children while they are "just doing their jobs" has such an impact on my son. Perhaps it's not WHAT
you do that matters, but HOW you do it?
Lesson #2 Why is it that our society
tends to value people differently by the jobs that
they do? What would YOU say if your three year old
child told you that they wanted to be a garbage
collector or a janitor? Now think about what would
you say if they told you that again when they were a
teenager? If the idea makes you uncomfortable, go
back and re-read Lesson #1.
Lesson #3 When was the last time you let
yourself "play" like a three year-old? When did you last let your
imagination just run wild, become a different person
and use a different voice?
Think about those lessons as you go about your
routine this week. If you remain mindful of them,
I'm sure that there will be nothing "routine" about
your week!
(And thanks again for yet another lesson son!)
ENJOY NOW!
