Moment

Working with kids is hard. They require at least three times the amount of attention, reassurance, support and instruction as an adult. 

sometimes it really wears me out.   

Say I've planned an activity that I think will last an hour. I careful map everything out ahead of time, perfecting every little detail so that the whole thing will run smoothly. - Then comes time for the kids to do the activity and it takes 5 minutes. All of a sudden all of the work I've done to prepare is strewn across the floor in a frenzy of expedient childhood creativity. It's almost heart breaking.

And just as the prospect of cleaning up yet another mess begins to make my blood sugar drop and my stamina fade, the kids dash to the next game, project or source of amusement with enough energy to begin a marathon. 

It makes me feel like a donkey in a room full of energizer bunnies. 

But its not all bad. Every now and then I have a moment. A moment where the kids prove me wrong- like when I assume they wont understand but they do. A moment in which they show signs of maturity- like when the console each others fears. A moment where they are more in touch wit their natural human instincts than many modern adults- like when they cry, laugh or just smile because thats what the world is begging them to do. 

Simply by looking past the paint smears, and into those wide 6 year old eyes   I see their brains processing, their minds racing and their emotions projected. 

They know more than I ever could have guessed.

They perceive the world in a way tainted by juice boxes and step stools, true. But they still perceive it. 

Little kids have the ability to see the bright side of everything. 

When it rains they welcome the fresh pools as stomping ground. 

When they fall they laugh it off as the best joke in the world. 

And despite the drained energy and unappreciated time, at the end of the day I can't help that its not me teaching them, But them teaching me.