Creativity and Joy

Screenshot from video

 
bikehikebabe sent me the link to this heartwarming video about a 911 call. The father made the call but couldn’t talk so his 5-year old daughter dealt with the dispatcher. She was in her pajamas and at one point wanted to get properly dressed before the ambulance arrived, but the dispatcher convinced her it was better to stay on the phone. She good-naturedly agreed.

Have you ever had to phone 911? We never have, but I once had to drive my husband to the emergency room, a 45-minute trip, when he chewed up a finger with a chain saw. He was going in and out of shock, and I wasn’t feeling so good myself. Every once in a while we had to crack a joke and laugh to relieve the tension.

I also had a serious salivary gland infection once. I kept waiting for it to get better but instead I kept feeling worse and worse and the red, inflamed area of my neck kept getting larger and larger. It was on the weekend so I couldn’t phone my regular doctor, and I kept debating whether I should wait longer or just drive to the emergency room. It was a hot July night so when I stated shivering around 2 AM I was relieved to have it settled. That was not a good sign. So I drove myself to the emergency room and they gave me some intravenous antibiotics which worked just fine.

I’ve had the same type of infection several times since then, but I know enough now to go to a doctor before things get that drastic. It helps to know what’s going on.

Have you ever gone to the emergency room? Did you ever have trouble deciding whether or not it was the right thing to do?

(Click on images for larger view.)

 
Since Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother was published there’s been a lot of discussion about how to raise children. My own opinions were formed years ago. I read a lot about child development/child raising when Kaitlin was little and the two pieces of advice I remember most were

1. The best way to give children self-esteem is to enjoy being with them. Basically that’s giving children the assurance that their self worth isn’t conditional on performance and status.
2. The adolescents who have trouble are the ones who think their parents aren’t happy. It was written by a fellow who worked a lot with teens and his argument made sense. If teens know only unhappy adults, they will be afraid of joining the adult world. That resonated with me because my folks made a big distinction between children and adults. To them childhood was a time of fun and games, adulthood was burdened with responsibilities. It turned me into a pretty serious kid, trying to figure out how I could make my own adulthood not quite so bad. 🙂

As it turned out I loved being an adult, having choices and being able to work for what I wanted. So when we had Kaitlin we figured our main goal was to help her grow into a competent adult. Before she was three years old she was already helping with family chores. Her part was nothing demanding but it made her a contributing member of the family. Everyone helped.

As she grew older we tried to give her the skills she would need in life, including learning to make decisions while we could still give her some guidance and support. Having land up in the mountains gave us plenty of chances to work on projects as a family, teach her new skills and enjoy time together.

 

 

 

Unlike a lot of families we didn’t stress academics very much. We didn’t push her to get A’s. B’s were fine, and if she had tried in a class an even lower grade would have been all right. We also encouraged her to work outside the home so she could earn money for things she wanted. She had a paper route for several years starting when she was 11. When she got tired of that she found a job helping a person with housework, then when she was in high school she got a job at a local drive in. We were hesitant about the time that would take but she said she did better if she had a lot to do so we let her try…as long as she could get at least B’s on her report cards. She was right, if anything her grades improved even though she was taking some Advanced Placement courses.

A lot of people say children shouldn’t work while going to school, their primary job is to study and prepare for their future. In our mind working was giving her invaluable life experience. In particular, her job at the drive-in made her realize what her options would be if she didn’t have a college education. So when she did go to college she knew why she was there and what she wanted. She had little trouble taking charge of her life and doing well. Then she went on to one of the best graduate schools in the country (University of Michigan) in her field (biopsychology). And she’s now working full time as well as working on an MBA.

Clearly we don’t believe pressuring children to do well on tests is the best way to prepare them for a happy, productive and successful life.

What about you? What do you think?

 
Because of the drought we don’t leave our Christmas tree up for much longer than a week, but I do love the lights. So I’m starting to decorate our piano with an artificial garland and some mini LED lights. The above picture doesn’t do it justice, but it gives the general idea. The lights are partially hidden by the garland and different ones can be seen as I walk across the living room. The arrangement is new enough that it still catches me by surprise when I go into the living room.
 

As I told my husband, I don’t care that much about decorating for Christmas, but I do think the shortest days of the year deserve some attention. Another thing I bought for the occasion was a hyacinth. The one shown on the left is gone already, but its fragrance was also a delightful surprise when I walked into the living room. (I spend most of my time in my study.)

I’ve planted a few more hyacinths…red this time… and they look as if they will bloom in the near future.

Also each year we buy an amaryllis, partly because the flowers are pretty, but also because the stalks grow so fast…. sometimes as much as an inch or two a day. My mother-in-law started the tradition when Kaitlin was little. Every year she would send me one and we would measure it each day once it started growing.

So those are some of the little delights in my life right now. Do you have any in yours?