The power of a dinner table.
October 23, 2016
I don’t think anyone can help but feel saturated with all the politics coming our way with just a few weeks left before the presidential election. But every once in a while, something catches my eye. Though it touches on the current election, it is about something more important and far reaching. David Brooks, a columnist for the New Your Times, wrote about a weekly experience he began about 2 years ago that he has maintained. He has dinner with Santi and his parents and whoever else who happens to be around the dinner table on any particular night. Santi goes to a public school in Washington DC and had a friend who often went to school hungry so Santi invited him to eat and sleep at his home occasionally. The friend had a friend who had a friend, who had a friend.
On any given Thursday night there might be 15-20 teens crammed around the table. Brooks refers to these teens as charismatic flowers, though they come from hostile soil.
At each meal,something happens that satisfies more than a person’s hunger. A commitment to care for one another is palpable. Each teen has to say something nobody else knows about them—giving them the chance to present their gifts. There is food to satisfy their appetites, and there is the all-important listening heart that every kid needs.
Programs don’t turn around kids’ lives. What changes people is relationships.
Souls are not saved in bundles. Love is the necessary life force.
Pass this story on and, if you are one of the fortunate ones, give thanks for the dinner table you sit at with your family and take note.
What personality traits do you want your child to have?
September 2, 2016
The beginning of the school year has parents focused on how they can best support their children’s success in school. But what exactly are the skills parents can help their children acquire that will help them grow into independent, capable and kind individuals? Strong reading and comprehension skills are certainly essential but so is the […]
Bribes don’t work when it comes to children & reading
August 7, 2016
Parents often resort to bribery to get their children to read, but studies show rewards backfire. “If you pay kids to read you’ll get them to read,” said Edward Deci, the author of “Why We Do What We Do” and a professor of psychology at the University of Rochester. “They’ll continue to read until you […]
Every child’s inalienable right
July 19, 2016
If only I could— I would ask that every child who comes into the world be granted their personal fairy godmother who will make sure children have loving parents and caregivers read to them. Simply stated, it should be every child’s inalienable right, but all too often the reality is something different. The nurturing and […]
Give your children a solid launch—grounded in safety and love—into the world
July 17, 2016
No matter how old or young your children are, I hope they never outgrow the desire and need to be read to. They will leave the world of a safe and loving childhood, but the experiencing of being read to is a felt memory that will anchor them in life. When they have children of […]
