Act like a child

IN MY LIFE I GET TO WEAR many hats. I'm a small-business owner as well as an educational speaker and writer in my industry. However, those jobs are nothing compared to the job I get to do on Sunday mornings. One day a week I get to serve as one of the nursery coordinators at my church. That job pays more than all the others combined. Who, after all, can place a value on the hugs, slobbery kisses, and genuine laughter of a child? I don't know why I like interacting with the little ones as I do. There are just so many joys that present themselves each Sunday morning. Sure, some of those joys are a little more humbling than others - changing smelly diapers or cleaning up spills and other messes top the charts. However, I feel that the look of pure joy I see in some of these children's eyes is only a reflection of the joy I have in seeing them. Serving (if it can really be called that) these children allows me to hear some interesting stories. I do recognize the imagination of children can run wild and that the truth is often embellished when they tell me the wonders of home life. If what I hear is true, the little girls have their own castles, and the little boys are busy fighting crime as super heroes. It's amazing to me how some adults are frightened by these little crawlers. So I wanted to share with you a few tips that have made me successful with these miniature human beings. One of the reasons I seem to have a good rapport with children, I believe, is my lack of size. I honestly think that these 3-year-old packages of dynamite look at little old me (with the emphasis on little ... and old) and think, "Yeah, I can take him." Talking with a 2-year-old can be challenging, but you see, I speak kid. And you can, too. Here is my own little Rosetta Stone and you can have it for free: Just make out about two words from every sentence and repeat those words in the form of a question. "A castle, huh?" "His cape?" . Acting silly seems to put me on their level more times than not. Even the poorest of magicians can fool a 3-year-old. The drawback is that they don't understand the line, "Don't try this at home." Kevin Harrison is a local business owner. Reach him at fun4eyes@ comcast.net.