Empowering the kids

When we were driving home in the car Saturday, all of the electronic games died. So I tried to help from the driver's seat, which isn't always easy. Anyway, during the conversation I said:

The most important thing is what you think. No one can take your thoughts away from you and no one can force you to think something you don't want to think.

I made E write it down for me so I could remember it. When I was in school I sat for many hours thinking, daydreaming about what ever I wanted. I do the same when I am driving. I encouraged the kids to use this 'downtime' to think about whatever they wanted. Look out the window and notice the world around them. They were both very satisfied with my suggestion and enjoyed spending some time just being.

There was a parent at Wannado that asked me about what things I thought my kids were not learning because they were not in school. My first response was patience. They don't usually have to wait for much. I'm not sure that is such a bad thing. Just now, I realized that they don't have to learn to cope with long sessions of boredom. That goes closely with patience, but just a little different twist. They have always been very good about riding long distances in the car, even before electronic gadgets came into their lives. I just always played games, sang songs, or let them sleep. I like adding 'just be' to the list of things to do in the car. It just feels good.