MY CONNECTIONS TO PLAY

"My Connections to Play."

“Necessity may be the mother of invention, but play most certainly is the father”.  Roger von Oech

I think this quote about play truly describes the role of play in my early childhood. I have two older brothers and together we were always creating something, whether wooden go-carts made from pallets and old tires or a covered community made under the brushes of the undeveloped acreage that was in my neighborhood. When I played with my sister we were always designing and creating fashionable wardrobes for our dolls, or for ourselves including wooden footwear from leftover scrap wood that we found in the yard of a nearby woodworking shop.  

The second quote that I believe speaks about what play meant to me as a child would be “At the end of the day your feet should be dirty, your hair messy, and your eyes sparkling”. As children my siblings and I were fortunate to be able to play outdoors regularly, and sometimes all day. During the summer time, I would go ‘exploring’ sometimes miles away from my home with my older brother. We grew up poor so many times we were barefoot when we went outside. So definitely my feet would be dirty but there must have been a sparkle in my eyes as I reflected on all the exotic fruits that we found in the orchards of a deserted mansion that was a short distance from where we lived.

One toy that was a hit during my childhood was the hoola hoop. My sister and I were very skilled with this toy. I remember the competitions we held to see who can keep it up the longest and the tricks we learned to do with the hoop. The good thing was as we played we were also working out and keeping our bodies fit.     

    

Another favorite form of play was the skipping rope. We would skip to the rhythm of nursery rhymes and other diddles that we made up. Sometimes one child would jump by themselves but mostly we all jumped together which was more fun for me.

One last game that we played consistently as children was hopscotch. The good thing about hop-scotch was it did not require our parents to buy anything for us to play the game. We would use the limestone ‘chalky’ rocks to trace out the game and play would commence.

   

During my childhood play was an essential part of life. Neighborhood children came together to play practically every day. Even my mom and aunts would come and play with us sometimes. I can remember one of my aunts having a ‘jacks’ competition with us girls to see who would win. Surprisingly she still had a lot of skills, and if I can remember correctly, she won the competition.

Children play so much differently today than the way I played as a child. Children were freer to move around their neighborhoods safely and parents felt more secure letting their children play outdoors even in the poorer areas. Today children explore the world wide web but we explored our neighborhoods. Children spend much of their time playing indoors watching the television or using their hand-held gadgets, but we spent most of our time outside. Television programming started later in the afternoons so we were compelled to go outdoors.  The games children play today are mostly passive, but our games required a lot of physical activity. 

I think this quote expresses so exquisitely the way I feel about the world today. Wouldn’t it be great if instead of going to work every day we got to go and play with the people we love? 

    

Relationship Reflection

Relationship Reflection

“Man is by nature a social animal.”  Aristotle.

Humans were created as social beings. Our interaction with others helps to keep us happy and fulfilled in life. I have been blessed to have a close-knit family that I love spending time with. I have been married to my husband Elgin for over 22 years now. I can truly say he is my ‘better half’. Elgin is a caring man who puts the needs of others before his own. He is very thoughtful and takes good care of his family. He has taught me how to be selfless and think of others first. With Elgin, I have learned that life is not always about me and how I feel but it involves considering others as well and as I do this I always feel better about myself regardless of how things turn out.

 

My two girls Nicole and Erin are a wonderful blessing to me. I believe God has allowed them to be a part of my life to keep me humble and in close communion with Him as I try to give guidance and counsel to these beautiful young ladies. Nicole has grown to be quite mature and independent as she succeeds in her career path in the financial industry. Erin still brings the sparkle to my eye with her quick wit and easy laughter as well as her willingness to forgive and move on. Nicole has taught me to speak my mind clearly and succinctly but with love. Erin has taught me not to sweat the small stuff and to believe that things will work out for the better. She is a lover of children and I see a lot of myself in her. My experiences with Erin have increased my ability to love without looking to be loved back which I feel has a positive impact with my service as an early childhood professional.

                                                                       

 

Nicole, Dellarece and Erin

I have a sister who is one of my closest friends. We work together at the same school, attend the same church and live within a fifteen minute drive from each other. Re-c, as she is affectionately called and I have been close from childhood. I am fortunate to have a sister that I can turn to for advice or assistance whenever the need arises, and I am sure she would say the same of me. Re-c has taught me the blessings of family, and the importance of reaching out for help from others when you are unable to help yourself. I have cultivated a beautiful friendship which resulted from my reaching out for assistance when I was in a predicament. If it were not for my relationship with my sister I do not know if I would have this friendship today and my life would definitely not be the same.

             

 

Me and my sis Re-c

My mom and dad are the foundation on which my life was built. They have sacrificed to provide for my siblings and me and have always given me the opportunity to be the best me in whatever I tried to do. My mom as taught me the value of hard work and taking care of business. She has demonstrated repeatedly the benefit of finishing what was started. My dad is a lover of fishing and the outdoors. He has taught me to ‘stop and smell the roses’ and to never be too busy to enjoy the simple things in life.

       

                                                                                      The Cleare Family            

                                           Dad the fisherman

Some of my significant relationships would include some of my colleagues that I work with and friends I have established from childhood and recent years. In a nutshell, life has taught me to treasure my family and friends as well as the persons I interact with on a regular basis because life is precious and you sometimes never realize how much you need or love someone until they are gone.

Like the words of the song, "If I could help somebody as I pass along, then my living shall not be in vain."