Dining

Begin by asking yourself: how do I feel about mealtimes? In your home, is it a rush to get food on the table? Do you enjoy cooking and preparing food for yourself and your family? Do you automatically think of and dread the questions: what will we have? who will make the food? who will clean-up? Look truthfully at your own sentiments around dining and then consider what attitude you would like to engender in your child. Here are some intentions you might consider: a sense of calm and nourishment a time to slow down from a busy day a chance for conversation a gathering together with the ones you love It is possible to go from a chaotic experience around meals to slowly, step by step, establishing form and rhythm, opportunity for you and your family to recharge. We know that children are extremely sensitive to the emotional environment in which they find themselves. Consider using the word “dining” instead of “eating”. To me, it conjures a sense of the experience, not just the practical effect of putting food into one’s mouth. Children are attracted to beauty and interesting language catches their attention, they pause to listen.  “Dining” feels…

Silence

Children need time to reflect, process, and digest. What time is allowed for your child each day to tune in to self? Our current societal environment is comprised of countless disparate influences; it is a constant flow of information, voices, noise, and opinions. Your child deserves time with his own innate wisdom, the sensitivities which he carries. Consider the simple act of lighting a candle. Take a deep breath, allow yourself to feel your feet upon the earth, center yourself, strike the match, touch the light to the wick, and pause. Take time to do this for yourself and you may be surprised how these few moments can multiply and ripple out into your life. I have never met a child who was not captivated by a lit candle. Perhaps add this ritual to your mealtimes or light a candle at bedtime for evening reflection, allow the child to enjoy silence, and then to extinguish the light when he is ready. This photograph shows a young child walking in a public herb garden. She found this place of reverence and was immediately attracted to it, she felt welcome to enter. What places invite your child to be mindful? Does he…