Children Love to Help

    When his parents bought a new grill last summer, Zachary, 18 months, decided to help put it together. His father snapped this picture.  Well, snapped is not quite the word for it.  Noah knows how to get down on the child's level and get in close.  

     He caught a precious moment.  I love the look of concentration.

     Having grandchildren reminds me of life with my own children, how eager they were to be able and to make a contribution.  Small children are both exuberantly playful and very earnest.  They know their parents do a lot for them and they need to do their share.  Doing one's part is apparently wired in.  When Noah was a baby sitting in a swing with a tray for toys, he would regularly throw his toys overboard or inadvertantly lose them.  Big brother Benjamin would pick them up for him tirelessly.  And now we have Chanan, Zachary's cousin, planning to put the socks and booties on their next baby.  Both children put in an honest day's work each and every day.  It's enchanting, and sobering, to watch.

     For more information about children, child development, and how to help children, including holiday craft ideas, scroll down to the articles and links below.  And enjoy the season.

     Trish/aka Swamp Walking Woman