It was a fun Sunday when we five families drove up to Shakespeare Park in Whangaparoa , North Auckland. We propped up the tent , laid out the mat and chilled . The kids frolicked in the ice-cold water , skimmed stones , collected shells , attempted constructing a sand castle with an elaborate drainage system and generally had a good time . Sandwiches , upma and other assorted treats were washed down with beer and soft drinks .
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Would not have imagined that my son's first day at kindy would have such an impact on me . Him , who for the last three and a half years has lived a sheltered life under the watchful eye of us , his parents , and more recently his grandparents , being suddenly sent away for 4 hours to be among other kids and strange adults was , to say the least, daunting. What if he wanted to make poo-poo , who would clean him , would they clean him as good as he was cleaned at home . Even though he's been under training to clean himself , would the minders actually supervise him. What if he suddenly wanted to go home , would he be left in the corner to cry himself dry and hoarse. How would he interact with the other children , would he pay heed to the adults' admonitions or reprimands . These were the thoughts that passed through our minds on our way to the kndergarten.
Kyle is a bold child and usually makes friends quickly . So our fears were put to rest when he took to the kindergarten like a fish being thrown back into the water . There he was using a paint brush dipped in blue paint to make his first masterful strokes on a piece of paper. Then onto the building blocks to erect his first skyscraper . Next onto the sandpit to dig a trench , followed by him catching the eye of a girl his age and chasing her around the play area ….the boy was home . Even the minder's call of "mat time" could not distract him from his individual path of discovery in this new terrain . Come the call of nature and he strode boldly into the toilet , made his wee-wee , wiped himself and was back out again .
Who are we to reign in this natural course of learning and discovery , of casual exchanges and quiet interactive play , of delightful intermingling and serendipitous invention . The child is the father of the man , and no child of mine is going to be barren of the opportunities available to father a man well rounded in the life of this world .
Go ahead , Kyle , live !!
