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Check-in
A Child
Learns
If a child lives with criticism, he learns to
condemn.
If a child lives with hostility, he learns to fight.
If a child lives with ridicule, he learns to be shy.
If a child lives with shame, he learns to feel
guilty.
If a child lives with tolerance, he learns to be
patient.
If a child lives with encouragement, he learns
confidence.
If a child lives with praise, he learns to appreciate.
If a child lives with fairness, he learns justice.
If a child lives with security, he learns to have
faith.
If a child lives with approval, he learns to like
himself.
If a child lives with acceptance and friendship,
he learns
to find love in the world.
Author unknown.
Questions:
Describe an important day, event or person from your
childhood memory and explain its importance to you.
What
lessons did you learn from your early childhood years? (Are there patterns
in our collective stories?)
What
lessons did you learn from your second decade? (Are there patterns in our
collective stories?)
What
parts of your childhood have you willingly or unwillingly brought into your
adult being?
For about half the time we took at check-in, each of us can make a brief statement about how we feel about the meeting, and what are our hopes for future meetings
Closing Words
From Rachel Carson:
If a child
is to keep alive his inborn sense of wonder…he needs the companionship of at
least one adult who can share it, rediscovering with him the joy, the
excitement, the mystery of the world we live in.