Slaps Me Back To Me - Judy and Barbra

Slapped Me Back to Me!

Single Word, Doodle, Photo, Haiku, Screenplay, Song Lyric POST people, places, tastes, sounds, sights, smells that "Slap Ya" into embracing who YOU are. The YOU you bury beneath the To-Do lists and responsibilities. The YOU who smiles, cringes, dreams, blames, forgives, denies, rejoices and hopes. Ageless, complicated, clandestine, indefinable YOU - hidden but not forgotten. Recipe4SuccessInc@blogspot.com

A Tale of Two Reunions

Before I post it, inviting you all to submit stories of people, places, tastes, sounds, sights, smells or any sensory experiences that remind you of who you are. YOU at your core. The YOU that gets buried beneath all that you are for others(intentionally or not). The YOU that makes you smile, cringe, dream, blame, forgive, deny, rejoice and hope. The ageless, complicated, secret, indefinable kernel of YOU - hidden but not forgotten.

Raise Your Hand 'A' Type Parents

How do I get my four-year-old into The Ivy League? 

Raise your hand if you ever, if only for a millisecond, believed you could manufacture the ‘Perfect A’ child?  Ok.  I’ll take the hit.  Guilty.  Banish me to ‘good-intentioned Mommy’ prison.  And don’t disregard the fact that, as a professional educator, I should have known better.  By default, ‘child experts’ are the worst offenders here.  We’ve hypothesized, theorized, researched and defended our way right into a resilient web of delusion.  On paper - a flawless plan of action.  Live and in color - not so much.

Here’s what professional and personal experience bears out.  Balanced and equipped university candidates are resilient AND imperfect.  

Notice I didn’t say, ‘smart’.

Academic excellence is merely one gauge of success; and a lesser indicator at best.  Look around you.  Our society values talent.  We exalt ambition.  We herald risk-taking.  If we possessed the power to build a Perfect ‘A’ child, would we?  What’s the pay-off?  Quantitative scores are indicators of quantifiable proficiency.  

Are you prepping your child to be exam ‘ready’ or exam ‘dependent’?

Control the environment.  Not the child.