To be five again‽
Submitted by PriceRip on Tue, 08/16/2016 - 7:06pm
The other day my granddaughter asked her mother a question:
"Do we live 'on' the earth?" I showed her images of earth with the core showing and explained yes it's not a circle it's a globe...and then she asked about the core in the images so I explained mass and gravity and the structure of the earth. Then she is looking at a picture and said "well, how did they build space then?" I told her we did not build space. And she said "it just came to us?". I sat for an moment and she ran away before I knew how to respond. And ran back in the room with the game go fish in her hands and asked "can we play go fish?"
Really??? You can't follow up 'how does space exist' with 'can we play go fish'!
Ugg.
Comments
It's a real joy when kids ask for information.
Especially when you give them the FULL answers, to the best of your ability.
My kids are getting to the point where I actually have started citing my sources, because we're at the point when they see actual injustice in the world and want to know why.
We had a long talk about Marie Antionette and the French Revolution today.
I do not pretend I know what I do not know.
Five going on Thirty
I love how they switch from pure child fantasy to full adult and back again. Experiencing her wonder at discovery keeps me grounded and optimistic in one self-contradictory flash of insight. My daughter is a wonder and I am certain my granddaughter will soar even higher.
I still believe
in things that made me happy when I was five.
Twice a year, I leave most modern things behind and make a trip to a very remote place. No phone, tv, computer, or running water except for one of the great lakes.
This year I built miniature canoes out of birch bark and floated them down a stream. I caught crayfish and temporarily made a tidal pool for them. I stood in wonder at the stars.
I've grown old and learned much, but haven't grown up.
Regardless of the path in life I chose, I realize it's always forward, never straight.
A walk in the woods.
From my professional background I use "A Walk in the Woods" to describe this state of existence. Whenever I get stuck in a mental rut or reach a logistical dead end I take a walk in the woods to get the creative juices flowing. Now that I am in Oregon, that will be much easier than it has been these past thirty five years.
When my son was four, and began talking, he questioned everythin
One typical line of inquiry was: Why do people do . . . (any adult activity he observed or heard about.) I gave as complete an answer as I could, which was inevitably followed by: Well why do people . . . (whatever appropriate phrase like "think that's important" or "want to get that done".) on and on, until: the only answer I could think of was "Well, that's their idea of fun." Then my son was satisfied, and I was exhausted. The original question could be about anything, like collecting stamps, working in various professions, worshiping in a religion, etc. This form of conversation occurred many times until I finally decided that together he & I had arrived at some real profundity about human motivation, but then I started to suspect that I'd only discovered the root of my own motivation.
This is a very delightful thread.
Delightful... and transcendental.
____________________
The political system is what it is because the People are who they are. — Plato
Future Zen master there... n/t
"Democracy is technique and the ability of power not to be understood as oppressor. Capitalism is the boss and democracy is its spokesperson." Peace - FN