I have spent the last week with my two little granddaughters.  One is three years old and the other is almost two.  Little Ellie, the younger of the two, loves to color.  There has been more than one time-out to teach her the difference between acceptable coloring spots--the coloring books--and unacceptable coloring spots--the walls and the front door.

After an offense, she sat forlornly in a corner for a short time, her crayons confiscated, and I wondered what was going on in the little mind behind the tear-streaked face.  I pondered on the fact that our parents set limits and teach us about boundaries in the hopes that we will learn the difference between right and wrong and someday learn to police our own actions.

I watched later as she was able to color with abandon on the walls of a big cardboard box at her cousin’s house and hoped I was not undoing the things her parents were working so hard to teach her.  Soon she will learn not only to color in the box or the book, but she will move on to a higher law and learn to stay within the lines.  It would be a wonderful thing if all adults had learned those lessons and were able to set appropriate boundaries for themselves and others.

Owies

Ellie loves dogs.  She has been nipped at a couple of times, though, and has learned the hard way that not all dogs are friendly and approachable.  Lucy has likewise learned that if you are not careful, you can hurt yourself jumping on the bed and end up sporting a Band-Aid or two.  Little bumps and bruises when we are young teach us painful lessons that it is hoped we take into adulthood with us.  Be careful so that you don’t physically hurt yourself and others.

Many of us are continually relearning the lessons of childhood.  A couple of days ago we watched a lady, talking on her cell phone, fail to notice that the truck in front of her had slowed down.  Her attention diverted, she plowed right into the back of the truck, the hood of her car crumpling like a soda can. 

The “No No” Chorus

When my son was tiny, he had heard the “no no chorus” many times as he was about to do something he shouldn’t.  I could tell when he was doing something he shouldn’t, because he picked up the habit of saying “no no no” as he was doing whatever it was. My son was still learning to understand that the second half of knowing that what you were doing was wrong was not doing it. I wonder sometimes if as adults we hear “no no no” in our heads and yet continue doing something we know we shouldn’t.

Rules and Recipes   

Lucy and I made some peanut butter cookies a few days ago.  She loves to help, but she hasn’t quite grasped the concept of following a recipe.  She does, however, enjoy randomly pouring things into the bowl.  We started out with about a half cup of salt in the mixing bowl.  I wet my finger and dipped it in the salt and had her taste it and tried to explain why we only wanted a little bit of salt in our cookies.  Someday she will learn the finer points of measured ingredients in proper proportions.  She will understand that life also contains important ingredients to be measured in proper proportions--work and play, spending and saving, indulging self and serving others.

Not Everyone Wears a White Hat

Ellie’s favorite movie is The Lion King.  We have watched it many times together.  This last time, I taught her a new phrase:  “bad guy.”  I wish that a two-year-old didn’t need to begin to understand that there is both good and bad in the world, but she does.  We shouted “bad guy” whenever Scar appeared and told him “no no no.”  He didn’t obey.  Maybe next time we watch, he’ll have learned his lesson.

Chances are, your parents tried hard to teach you so many things.  Wouldn’t it be a wonderful thing if they could look at your life and see that they succeeded?