As a parent, I am grateful when birthday presents for my child are something useful, rather than something that is going to take up space, but barely be used. It can be kind of hard these days though, as there is a lot of random stuff on offer, and a lot of kid activities are through screens. But, my friends and family know what Smallsteps is like, so they tend to get her things that are experiences or, activities that she can dive into.
Like a pile of rocks.
Thanks Uncle Galen.
A rock painting kit arrived in the mail a couple days back and tonight, as my wife is out for a colleague's birthday, Smallsteps and I dived into it. painting can of course be a little messy, but with some sheets of newspaper laid on the dining table, and a shirt that is a little too small now, we managed to keep it all relatively clean.
It was a lot of fun and while we didn't finish all we started, we got a good start on a red ladybird and a silver hedgehog, and we will do some more tomorrow when my wife can take part also. It is funny, because once my wife starts doing something like this, she gets all serious about it and really tries to create something good. I think adults should try creating stuff more often, because it has knock-on effects for other parts of life.
It doesn't have to be creating something good even, just getting the creative juices flowing. I think if more people spent time creating something with their hands, rather than just consuming something with their eyes, they would be far better off in quality of life.
None of these rocks are going to win a prize, but skills are developed over time and the interest to build them starts from somewhere. Too often I find parents these days relying on screens to entertain their children, and still expecting that when they grow up, they are going to have all the skills necessary to navigate their lives. I am not just talking about employable skills, but also the social and emotional skills also.
Like the patience required waiting for the paint to dry.
Taraz
[ Gen1: Hive ]