One sunny spring morning, I woke up and went outside to my backyard, where I found my niece and nephew playing on the grass. They were dressed in large winter jackets and hats, for it was still quite cold out. This fact did not disturb them. They played and ran and explored the outdoors.
My nephew, who is nearly six, was holding a long tree branch that had fallen from the oak tree on the north side of our property.
“I’m a squirrel catcher,” he told me and proceeded to jump up repeatedly with the stick aimed high toward the tree.
Of course, from my perspective, there was no way he’d reach the small creature at the top of the tree, but he persisted nonetheless. He tried a running head start, only to fall short several hundred feet below the squirrel’s position.
“He’s way up there. Do you see him?” my mother told him, but he ignored her comment.
Observing this made me realize the innocence of being a child. My nephew realized there was no way he’d be able to touch the squirrel, and he didn’t think far enough ahead to consider how he’d “catch” it with only a tree branch, but he continued to reach for it again and again. He was simply giddy with excitement that he’d come up with this fun game, and that was the only thing that preoccupied his mind for several minutes.
Although adults are more logical than young children, there’s something to be learned from this story. It doesn’t matter in the long term if we succeed or fail every goal we try to reach, because with every new experience we take away something valuable. We have to ask ourselves, “What have I learned?” to grow.
His innocence is an inspiration for me to continue reaching, no matter how things might turn out.
My nephew, who is nearly six, was holding a long tree branch that had fallen from the oak tree on the north side of our property.
“I’m a squirrel catcher,” he told me and proceeded to jump up repeatedly with the stick aimed high toward the tree.
Of course, from my perspective, there was no way he’d reach the small creature at the top of the tree, but he persisted nonetheless. He tried a running head start, only to fall short several hundred feet below the squirrel’s position.
“He’s way up there. Do you see him?” my mother told him, but he ignored her comment.
Observing this made me realize the innocence of being a child. My nephew realized there was no way he’d be able to touch the squirrel, and he didn’t think far enough ahead to consider how he’d “catch” it with only a tree branch, but he continued to reach for it again and again. He was simply giddy with excitement that he’d come up with this fun game, and that was the only thing that preoccupied his mind for several minutes.
Although adults are more logical than young children, there’s something to be learned from this story. It doesn’t matter in the long term if we succeed or fail every goal we try to reach, because with every new experience we take away something valuable. We have to ask ourselves, “What have I learned?” to grow.
His innocence is an inspiration for me to continue reaching, no matter how things might turn out.
Nice job transitioning and coming to a claim! This was enjoyable to read!
ReplyDeleteI really liked how you set the scene in the beginning by using descriptive words. I also like how you examined the innocence of children.
ReplyDelete