We have the gift to be very sensorial people...like animals we have basic senses...physical senses, but also we perceive things at other levels too...our body, soul and spirit communicate through invisible energies and realms...
how the sorroundings affect us is well known but there is more than too much loud noises make us death...there are things that we cannot yet measure. All things that we see, feel, touch and all other things than enter directly and inderectly in our lives are so important and we underestimate how they affect us, short term or long term. This is why we need to understand how 'open' little children are to everything that is in our world, which in their world is 'louder' and 'bigger'; basically little children , older children and some of us adults can be more 'open', meaning that we have less protection.
Adults who are aware of this know what to do to prevent or reduce impact on us, i.e. if we are allergic to perfume, gives us headache, sore throat, etc...we simply don't wear perfume, and try to avoid strong perfume.
Children, on the other hand are exposed to so much and in our modern times so much more that can be overstimulating and overwhelming. We may damage our little ones long term.
So, what are all these senses? What is all the fuss about? What do we have in our modern lives now and what is it that we are forgetting...how do we go back to simplicity and how can we protect our senses?
Read below; this is an extract from
Care of the Senses:
A Neglected Dimension of Education
Robert Sardello, Ph.D. and Cheryl Sanders, M.S.
- The sense of Touch - plastics of all kinds for disinfectingly clean surfaces, synthetic fibers chemically treated to be fire resistant; stain and wear resistant fibers in clothing, carpeting and bedclothes, glass, rubber, pressed wood, wall board;
very different from wool, silk, natural woods, soil, stones, skin.
- The sense of Balance - amusement park rides, airplanes, the subway, balancing a weeks old infant on its feet because it flexes its muscles when put in such a position;
very different from moving in a natural landscape, standing upright and finding ones balance in one's own time as a baby.
- The sense of Movement - riding in cars, buses, airplanes, exercise equipment, modern dances, competitive contact sports, power walking for fitness or weight loss;
very different from going for a leisurely stroll, riding a bicycle, tai chi, folk dancing, watching the movements of clouds, water, wheat in a field on a windy day.
- The Life sense - feeling bloated, heavy, drugged, bored, stuffed, heart-burn, achy, itchy all over, weighed down by everything;
very different from feeling tired, comfortable, thirsty, alert, hungry, energetic.
- The Vision sense - technicolor movies, advertising and billboards, pictures in magazines, color television, painted walls;
very different from the red and orange glow at dawn, the purple of the clouds at sunset, the play of light and shadow in the forest or off of plants.
- The sense of Smell - the odors of cologne, artificial odors added to soap, shampoos, deodorants, toothpaste, powder, crayons, paper, pictures in books ("scratch 'n sniff") chemical pollutants in the air, water and food, pesticides, exhaust fumes;
very different from the smell of grass, flowers, the human body, puppies breath, home baked anything.
- The sense of Taste - artificial flavoring in food, canned or processed foods, soft drinks, additives to all food, designer coffee, excessive use of processed salt;
very different from the taste of fresh fruits, vegetables, water, fresh milk.
- The sense of Warmth - automobile and home and public building air conditioning and heating in temperature controlled environments;
very different from experiencing the changing temperature of the seasons, sweating when it's hot, bundling up to go out in winter.
- The sense of Hearing - electronically amplified music, digital recordings, cellular telephones, television, the noise of city and traffic, sirens, horns;
very different from live music and singing without amplification, conversation, silence.
- The sense of Speech - television, radio, talk shows, specialized technical language, films, degradation of language into slang and mumbled epitaphs, trash novels;
very different from conversation, searching for the exact right word, careful description, thoughtful responsiveness.
- The sense of Thought - computers, internet, faxes, teaching information only, television talk shows, learning from a computer, lecturing to an overlarge class, corporate business communication;
very different from conversation, thinking through ideas in original ways with others, creative thought, teaching out of deeply knowing the nature of one's subject, so that thought imbues one's teaching with originality.
- The sense of the I - appealing to the masses, the corporate world, uniformity, conformity, political edicts, mass communications, television, films, peer pressure;
very different from perceiving what is unique about an individual, face to face contact, selflessness, interest in the other person.
These senses are all interconnected, weaving together a wonderful web, and just like a spider's web can be very strong, yet can be broken and fragile and needs care and attention, it needs to be woven again, and again.
Home sweet home!
Home is the immediate surrounding of the young child; its smells, the light and colours that are around him, the mood and the atmosphere that fill the space around him…all this have to be subtle, yet strong; defining the child’s environment as safe. Home sweet home!
Yet…how many homes are really like that? There is usually a certain degree of loudness, maybe yelling or just a loud radio, or the vacuum cleaner, or the washing machine, the computer or the phone…perhaps even the decoration is too loud!
We have to remember that the critical years between 0 to 7 are so important in the child’s development. Here the child absorbs everything. He is at one with his surroundings.
As parents and carers we truly need to be caring. This means that the child needs to breath in our love. The child needs warmth. He needs to feel safe and loved. He needs to feel cared for and nurtured. All the child’s senses are engaged and it is very important to protect the child from external influences that may awaken his senses too early.
Home is family and family is community, includes all things familiar to the child's world and the parent's or carer's world. Routine is rhythm and friends and other menbers of family is the core group of adults that the child has daily contact with. These adults and older children are what the child relates to and likes to imitate. The main carer, mother, father, nanny, is the model, setting the example.
Familiar is a lovely word that explains the child’s need to be in a loving family/ social nucleus, and with people and things that he recognizes and with which he feels safe. That is also why the rhythm is important in our sessions; the familiarity and the comfort of knowing where things are, what is happening next…the routine, all these helping to form good social skills and good habits by example and imitation.
The child experiences all the subtle gestures, the welcoming words, the reverence, the atmosphere filled with love and joy, the adult world at ‘work’, busy and absorbed in crafty activities, yet relaxed and sociable. It is good for children to see adults being adults. Mums and dads don’t usually need to play with children all the time. The children need to see the adult example and they need to copy that and use their imagination and reproduce the adult world in they play world. This is how they learn and how they engage with the outside world.
The doing is the most important thing and the being is the doing. The adults being there is not enough. The children need to feel the adults being fully engaged and relaxed while at work.
For us parents and nannies the need to chat is vital! We need to compare notes all the time, and to share parenting information. Yet if adults are in the group with a sense of purpose and are willing to learn and share skills, sing, join in and help around, the child will feel more relaxed and will benefit from the session. It doesn’t help to be there with the child and text your friend on the mobile phone!
A happy, contented and balanced child thrives in a homely environment. Now we all remeber what home means.
Home to me means my world. It is a reflection of me. It nourishes me and protects me.
I am 'at home' in my home. Comfortable. In comfort we are relaxed. When we are relaxed we are at peace with ourselves and with others and the world.
Are we all sitting comfortably?
Are we relaxed?
Do we feel nourished? Truly nourished...not just food...but are we nourishing ourselves at a deeper level....
Do we have Love in our daily lives?
Are we happy?
Probably not...at least not all the above..or not 100%
This is a little recipe I borrowed years ago and I like to remind myself now of what I need for a happy home:
Happy Home Recipe
4 cups love 3 cups forgiveness
2 cups loyalty 1 cup friendship
4 quarts faith 5 spoons hope
2 spoons tenderness 1 barrel laughter
Take love and loyalty. Mix thoroughly with faith. Blend with tenderness, kindness and understanding.
Add friendship and hope.
Sprinkle abundantly with laughter.
Bake with sunshine.
Serve daily in generous helpings.
Blessings to all!
Susannah
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