Just last week I went to the childcare facility here on campus for an interview. It made me realize how much I missed working with kids. Moving to college meant I had to leave my nannying, teacher aiding, and other kid related jobs. Needless to say, I spent the past 4 years that I have been working, surrounded by people under the age of 10. I've learned a lot from all the people I have been exposed to during my lifetime, but I can still say that I've learned the most from the younger ones. I am realizing now as I go through my "little kid withdrawal" before I start up working at the childcare center the abundant lessons I have learned from them. Here are a few...
1. Unconditional Love
This is the biggest one in my mind. When I think about the little kids I've encountered or taken care of all I think about is the way that they love with no boundaries. When I worked in the first-grade classroom during high school I would always get lots of this from all the students. They didn't hesitate to show me all the love they could give. There was no shame in showing someone like me who they didn't know super well love and care. An important aspect of little kids love is the fact that there are no expectations associated with it. They aren't loving to get something in return. They are just expressing their pure hearts in any way that they can.
2. Forgiveness (the real thing)
Forgiveness is something that I and I'm sure many others struggle with. I can say that I forgave someone, but really in the back of my mind it never really goes away no matter how hard I try to not hold a grudge. If you do something to hurt a little kid and say sorry they will be over it in the blink of an eye. They aren't old enough (usually) to have experienced breaking someone's trust and what that entails so they actually engage in forgiveness. They genuinely move on from the mistakes others have made and truly give them another chance without the expectation they will fail again.
3. Joy
Being around little kids always makes me feel so joyful and part of that is the fact that they truly do get happy over the little things. They get excited about things like peek a boo, bubbles, empty boxes, jumping in puddles, and reading stories. Joy is a thing that young children possess and radiate in a way that older people can't seem to. The world and experiences shouldn't diminish that joy as much as it does.
4. Acceptance
Judging is something that young kids don't do. They don't treat someone who doesn't look like them or act like them any differently. They don't gossip or get uncomfortable when they see someone who isn't acting like everyone else. Instead, in the purest form they simply accept others.
5. Curiosity
"Why?" The typical question that every little kid asks on repeat and everyone whose older no longer asks. Kids are constantly asking questions. They have a desire to understand the world around them. I feel like the older people get the less they question things. Instead, they just accept them as true and move on.
