A Shift of Perspective – Children
Yesterday I was at a luncheon honoring Michael Swartz's new job promotion. At one end of the long table was the Diamond-Robey family – Dawn, Matt and 20-month-old Dylan. At one point during the meal, Dylan suddenly became upset and cried – loudly and with copious tears. Within seconds of his mini-melt-down, the whole rest of the table – 10+ folks – en masse, turned to Dylan and murmured, "Awwwwww" – and with the tone of voice and facial expressions of comfort.
On the one hand, it was funny that, without exception, all became sincerely sympathetic to Dylan's upset. On the other hand, that unanimous reaction to a toddler could signify a general shift in attitude towards children.
I've been on many planes with children crying/screaming. There seems to me to have been a general slide towards more tolerance from both men and women during those times. Maybe it's projection on my part, being a grandmother, but I don't hear the grumblings I used to hear. While there is still plenty of work to be done to protect and nurture our young, I like the paradigm shift.
I don't have a picture of Dylan that I can find, and I do have pics of some other babies you might know. On the left above is Hannah Roy, daughter of Scott and Lizzie. On the right is another newborn, Jonathon Hunter Main, being held by his dad Jeremy, while mom Tracey recuperates. And below is a pic of the sleeping children of Samantha and Dan Lewis – George and Lyra Rose. Herein lies our future. Let's love them well.
This post hangs in my throat. When I was just beyond “toddler” but not yet in school, my mother ran an unofficial day care for about 4-5 other children. The resentment I harbored against children was set. I had nieces and nephews closer to my age than their parents and how they grew up loving me is amazing. Fortunately this is one of the issues I took on early on in my MTL experience in the 1980’s. Of course they’re our future and what they make of it depends a lot on how they relate to us. Winks, hugs and smiles can help tear down a wall built up by distance and resentment. Bless you Ann.