My grand’s piano lesson starts with her composing along with her teacher. Ya gotta love it!
Can you imagine Louis Armstrong’s first experience with a horn? I could only imagine he lit up and wouldn’t stop playing whether he knew anything about reading music or not. Sparks are those experiences in life that get you excited and help you decide what you like to do, want to learn and want to be known as. We help our children find their spark by dabbling. For my grands, it’s been cheerleading, gymnastics, martial arts, soccer, Right now one is loving piano. And the 6-year old is looking like he ‘da man in that football uniform. Maybe it’s just the act of adults serving them those beloved snacks that made him stand as tall as I’ve ever seen him stand after the game. He also loves to draw and she is crazy about word puzzles and mazes right now.
For Kofi, it was certainly Circus Camp followed by annual trips to the Winter Magic Carnival in Pigeon Forge. For Yakini, it was acting, dancing and a knack for styling natural hair. Sage loves pop culture trivia and all thing sports. He is seeing his way into sports production. And Issa played the trombone in the band only to switch to the football team in high school. Issa went to Kroger Cooking Camp when he was 8 years old and I started taking him out to restaurants for our 1-on-1 quality time. I will never forget his fascination with The Food Studio, formerly in the King Plow Arts complex. He remained in the jazz band from middle school to high school graduation and the fact that he also produces music is no surprise to me. he never stopped talking about the limited vegetarian dining options in our city. Well, lo and behold. He did it! Life Bistro, a fine dining experience is less than 1 mile from my house and 2 blocks from his elementary school.
So, keep exploring and exposing your children to all kinds of sports, arts, careers, books. And when sparks fly, pay attention and nurture them. Because when the fire burns, there is no telling what our children can authentically “be” and bring to this world that make it just a little bit better.
