Winter is the season of Birthdays at our house. We have birthdays from early November until mid-February, at least one a month; so many that, with Thanksgiving and Christmas, we have a major celebration every 2 weeks for 3 months!
In our house we try to make each birthday a special occasion, and the only time of year that they get their "big" and most wished-for gifts. We reserve Birthdays as the time they are allowed to feel a bit entitled.
In our home we spend a great deal of time and energy serving others and thinking about how to help people who are struggling. We practice being good stewards of earth, and good children of society, and teach them the interconnectedness of their spirits with those of others. We are not only trying to raise our children with a global consiousness, but we also don't want them to loose sight of the fact that each of them are entitled to have individual preferences, beliefs, and to feel adored and beloved as well. So on their birthdays, and at other random times throughout the year, we grant them permission to be a bit selfish.
Someday I hope they are able to be servants without self-sacrificing more than is healthy. I hope they are each able to honor their individual desires, have confidence in their abilities to self-sustain their presence on earth, and be able to acknowledge their needs. I also hope that they are able to balance their desire to self-indulge with the understanding that there is work to be done in this world, and that they will accept the call with open and strong hearts.
No comments:
Post a Comment