Assessment is Risky

Have I told you that I love Louis C.K.?  I do.
Have I told you that I love your kids?  I do.

And you know why?  Both teach me things.  They throw sh*t in my face that makes me think and laugh and cry and feel and wonder and nod.

And, as usual when something I don't like is happening in the world, I look to people like Louis and your kids to help glean context for finding hope again.  And this is what I'm seeing:

Life is dangerous.  We come upon situations that require risk assessment all the time.  And we start practicing this risk assessment at a very young age.  We figure out some tendencies of the way things and people work.  Over time, we build on the discoveries of these tendencies, and we adjust the way we assess risk based on these discoveries.

The thing about kids?  They keep retesting.  They don't see tendencies as static.  They are open to the possibility of tendencies changing.  Even though the chair didn't tip over last time, they know it's possible, so they're still careful.  Even though their friend bit them the last time they held on tight to the toy, they're still going to figure out a way to keep the toy again, but they might just adjust a bit (like advocating firmly verbally or creating solutions with their wonderful divergent thinking abilities).   

Another thing about kids?  They are willing to take risks to trust each other.  Dangerous, right? Because trusting others is vulnerable.  It requires letting go and seeing value in that risk/vulnerability. 

Now I know, I know... I'm an idealist.  It's just how I work.  I have a need for consistency in the message of my actions and my values.  And I'm also, admittedly, a bit of a button pusher.  I have a need to shine a light where I see inconsistencies in messages of actions and values.  And part of my idealistic, button-pushing quest is to advocate for consistency between the way we are "raising" our children and the way we are "raising" our world.  So I hope that the lessons and values children establish here at Tumbleweed will transfer into adulthood and support healthy, positive change for the future!