Yes, I'm blogging on a Saturday. What's sleeping in?
Brennan got himself dressed today. This is a big deal because he rarely does that, but just in the last week something great has happened at our house.
We've slowed down.
See, when Rich was going to school, mornings were a mad rush, no matter how early we rose (Brush your teeth! Yes, all of them! How did you get dog food on your...nevermind - bring me the comb so I can get this donut out of your brother's hair!). After school wasn't much better because of soccer practice, cooking dinner, fighting off Jehovah Witnesses in the driveway, etc.
Now, Brennan ain't gonna hurry himself about anything, for anybody. He's on his own time schedule, and it's, shall we say, very Eastern (He'll get to it when he gets to it).
Thing is, he's perfectly capable of dressing himself, brushing his teeth, and getting the donut out of his own hair (or close enough that the glaze can be passed off as mousse). But he never did before, and it's because he didn't have time. When I kept rushing him, he'd simply give up.
Think about how this applies to the way we educate children. We rush them from one activity to the next, 10 minutes here, 10 minutes there, hurry through lunch, hurry through recess. Then we wonder why there's an ADD pandemic. It's OUR OWN FAULT.
I'm amazed at what kids can do, given the opportunity, and more importantly, the time. I think more than anything else, the next month will be a lesson in slowing down, re-inventing the wheel a bit, and allowing ourselves to be bored at times. In our fast-food obsessed and ulcer-ridden culture, the concept of doing something thoroughly and well has little value. But taking time to do it right and good is invaluable, and it's something most successful people realize early on.
Maybe they started with dressing themselves.
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