In our daycare there was a side room where several
kids and I were playing. Suddenly, one kid who stood by the window yelled, “It’s a flying saucer!” He
pointed excitedly up in the sky. We all ran over and
looked, and there, high above the clouds, was a white object sitting
practically stationary far above us.
We all stood there for a while, staring. Then another kid
yelled, “Quick! Hide before it shoots us with its laser ray!” We all screamed, ran to a table, and crawled under for safety.
There under the table, I felt the need to do more than just
hide. All our teachers were in the other room and didn’t know that such an epic event
was happening! So I ran from our hiding place and found the nearest teacher.
“There’s a spaceship outside! We all saw it from the window!”
The teacher looked down at me, paused, and then said, “Yes, I know.
They came down here to talk to me.”
I looked up at her with great disappointment. She didn’t
believe me.
I don’t remember what happened next. But today, years
and years later, I remember exactly how her comment made me feel. I never want
to make my kid, or any kid, feel that way.
Kids believe in magic and fairy tales and spaceships and superheroes.
As adults, we must never be so stuck in reality that we squash the imaginations
and ideas of children.
Listen to children. Their questions and concerns are valid.
Don’t disappoint them!
