The Greatest [ Insert Adjective Here ] Story Ever

I have a theory.  Those of you who have read anything I've written are probably rolling your eyes and thinking something along the lines of: You have a lot of theories.  And those of you who haven't read anything I've written, well, if you read any more you will discover that I do, indeed, have many theories. 

So it's nothing new, I suppose, that I have formed a new one. 

I've been thinking about people a lot lately.  Wait - that's not entirely true.  I've been thinking about myself lately.  I've been thinking about how I love to tell stories.  I've been thinking about how I think it would be a good idea to truly keep a journal.  I've been thinking that I should a page out of Emily of New Moon (not literally!!) and only write nonfiction for a year.  I can do what I can to make the nonfiction as creative as possible, and try to build my skill a bit.  And then I started thinking about how I really do have a pretty interesting life.  There are plenty of things I can write about from just my own experiences without having to even dip into fiction. 

From there it wasn't a huge leap to think about how everyone must have a story in their life.  It's so easy to look at someone and assume that what we see is what we get.  Some people just don't seem interesting enough to have a story.  But my theory is this: Every single person has a story.  Deep, isn't it?

My good friend Beth recently posted a quote by C.S. Lewis on her facebook page, and I can't help but use it, too: "We meet no ordinary people in our lives."  It supports my theory completely.  I could go into a whole spiel about how every person was created unique and special by God, and therefore offers meaning and "that special something" to the world by simple breathing.  But I'm not (mainly because I think that while we are all born totally awesome we tend to wander away from that and by the time we reach adulthood need to do something other than breathe to make the world a better place).  Instead I am going to say that everyone has done something, experienced something, felt something that has reached to their soul. 

For some people it is a great love story, for others heartbreak.  There are some people out there who have experienced profound joy, and others who have suffered deep despair.  For all I know the person sitting at the next table over has been in a true comedy of errors, or the silent couple two tables away have hurt each other more deeply than they will ever admit to themselves or each other.  Some people will laugh or cry as they reminisce about childhood, others about last evening, and still others about the lives of their children.  Some stories will take ten minutes to tell, and others an hour and ten minutes.  And while my story may seem insignificant to you, it will have made a huge impact in my life.

My point is this: Everyone has a great story in their life.  And I want to hear them, and retell them.  So don't be surprised if you see me with small recorder, asking someone to tell me a story.  Because I am going to devote a year to finding the Greatest [Insert Adjective Here] Story Ever.  It should be interesting.  Because, after all, "We meet no ordinary people in our lives."

Breaking the Rules

I like to push boundaries and bend rules.  Not completely...Just enough to tell myself that regardless of the situation I still have some semblance of control.  Yes.  I am one of "those people."  I enjoy being just a little contrary.  And sometimes I go against the grain - just a little - simply to add excitement to life. 

Usually, however, when I work with kids I tend to stay within the guidelines.  Not everything in the field of Child Development has stood the test of time.  There is a lot of "pop psychology" that briefly finds its way into the field, only to be forgotten a few years after the thousands of books get published.  I figure that if I combine the theories of Piaget, Vygostky, Bronfenbrenner, and other big shot Child Developmentalists I figure I'm pretty good.  And ultimately, I feel that if I go into a house with a dedication to love (the child and their family) I am going to do some good.

A few weeks ago I decided to break the rules a bit.  In school I was taught to pretty much keep food out of the equation when working with kids.  Never use food as a reward.  Food is for eating and keeping the body healthy - not playing with.  If you absolutely must use food with kids, make sure it's healthy food, to teach good habits.

Right.

I made Christmas graham cracker trains with a few kids.  And how do you make a graham cracker train without frosting and candy?  Just call me the Rule-Breaker. 

Officially these are the areas we worked on while making the Christmas graham cracker trains:
     - Fine Motor Skills
     - Hand/Eye Coordination
     - Problem Solving
     - Abstract Reasoning
     - Spatial Relations
     - Expressive Language Skills
     - Receptive Language Skills
     - Number Sense
     - Self-Control (let's be honest here: I was incredibly impressed that the 2-year-olds were able to do this and only eat the candies they were given permission to eat)

A lot of great areas of work.  But really, the main reason I did this activity was because it was Christmas time. 

 And it was just fun.