While I do believe that each child has his or her own uniqueness, I know that we, for the most part, are the ones responsible in sparking their interests. Not all parents view this the way I do, and every parent is different. For example, I grew up very sheltered--playing outside our gate needed so much effort to persuade my mom and dad that I knew what to do when cars passed by the street. I needed my cousins to be there, just so I was not alone. My cousins ran freely outside our compound at any time of the day. And I was always envious of this.This sparked my interest in reading books. Maybe because I could live my life through the stories I read. I devoured books like crazy. At first, my mom encouraged it...but after a while, and a gazillion of books...it appeared to be a waste of money. Well, not for me. It is only now that I am beginning to put into reality the adventures I found in the pages of the books I've read.
As a mom, I want my daughter to experience the world, whole. Without barriers (well, with limitations.) We always bring her along on our out of town trips, out of the country, too. And some people (sometimes) comment that it's a waste of money because she will not remember it anyway. Sorry, you can raise your child your own way (Ooops! Did that come out harsh? Really?) but I believe that exposing my child to almost everything helps spark her interest. We carried her along Macau and Hong Kong, we held her hand (and still carried her) through the whole Angkor complex, we bring her to the beach...we bring her everywhere. And I must say, her preference, manner of playing, imagination and understanding is very unique. If you ask her what she wants to do, she will tell you:
- surf
- paddle
- yoga
- go to Tiki Beach
- skate
- be a pirate
- go to school
- take a bath
- see the sun
- climb mountains
- read a book
- take a picture
- sing
I am quite excited for our Baler trip in the coming weeks, and then Bangkok in December...of course, with Bean. Always.
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