Inspired by a waldorf mama, I've decided to write a post about our experiences in Waldorf living each Wednesday. I'm not off to a great start...being that it is Friday, alas, this is my aim.
I believe in living mindfully. I attempt to live mindfully. And through my lifestyle I allow my children to grow organically into the people they are meant to become. Waldorf to me is about simplicity. It's about trusting the process without so much intervening to *produce* something within my children. And I do trust them. I trust their process. And from time to time I am able to see within them what this creates.
Today I took my sweet peas to the apple orchard with a waldorf group. Throughout the week we read about September and apples and fall which all fits nicely into the week of the trip to the orchard and the autumnal equinox. After a short hike through a magical forest and an exploration of the apple trees that made up the organic orchard we visited the wee ones and I sat to enjoy a snack and some lunch. The tiniest of our group sat talking to himself about apples. He, at 20mo old, discussed with himself about red apples, big apples, little apples, tiny apples, dirty apples, yucky apples and of course a bit about tractors after an enchanted ride on the tractor drawn wagon! He left the table to head over to the wagon which contained our apples and started counting them 2, 4, 6, 8! Never in my day do I directly try to teach him anything...I allow him to carry on with his day while I immerse my oldest in her lessons. But today I saw that he is gaining wisdom through his simple state of being in our family. Adjectives and 2 times tables at 20 months! HA. Alas...my objective is not for him to understand these things but I found it amazing that he was able to absorb such details.
In our day I teach my 8 year old and I work in the house on things that need to be accomplished, along with this, I work from home some too. Every so often I get this inkling of a sensation that I have been ignoring some of our toddler's needs. I *know* in my heart that those are societal pressures and that he is having each and every need met in our family (he is actually the centre of our universe, don't you know...as far as the 8 year old is concerned!). But, what I do is just so vastly unique from everyone around me. I don't really spend much time "playing" with him. I just don't. I have a lot to do and he seems content without me playing with him. I actually never really did much with my daughter either. I have found that their play comes naturally when I leave them to their own means. They imitate me primarily (in the early years) and with their tiny kitchen tools they cook while I cook, stopping by the kitchen chair pulled up to the counter for a quick bite of whatever I'm cooking. They mop up the floor with an old prefold while I clean the floors throughout the house. They ride on the vacuum while I operate it. They walk around dusting the tables while I wipe the kitchen table for dinner. They match socks while I fold laundry (albeit never quite successfully but in an attempt to join in the fun). They climb under the covers of the bed while I make it and then they jump out to say Boo!. These kids have learned to play with life. When we walk they explore the world and we slow down for them to take in all that they see with all of their senses. When we sing we do so joyfully and often. We recite verses together. We laugh as we eat. We clean up with song and game. We have created a life that is play!
And through all of this, my toddler is learning. He is learning to be a part of this family. He is learning to pay attention to what we do to keep our day going. And I guess he's learning to count by two and describe different types of apples :D
Each morning we begin our day on walk in our forest. We are blessed to live on a sweet acre and a half that backs onto thousands more acres of forest and trails. So right out our back door is a trail system that we can connect to walk for hours or just a minutes. Each walk the children bring something from fall into our home. Something that reminds them that summer has now come to an end and that Father Winter might be settling into his place soon.
