I find there to be profound wisdom in proverbs, sayings and quotes and I marvel at the way they are so succinct in communicating messages to the reader. Mostly anonymous, they come to us from past generations and from across cultures. They speak of the experiences of lives lived and lessons learned. Quotes, like proverbs, make us think more deeply about something.
Each Friday, I post a Proverb or Saying and a Quote that I find thought-provoking.
I hope you will too.
“Even a small star shines in the darkness.”
~ Unknown
A star in the darknessConfucius is credited with writing and editing some influential Chinese classical literature. His principles had a basis in common Chinese tradition and beliefs. As a man, Confucius championed strong family loyalty, ancestor worship, respect of elders by their children and of husbands by their wives and in addition, family as a basis for ideal government.
His most famous adage for a good life is “Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself”, the so-called Golden Rule.
The Golden Rule is well know throughout the world. Lesser known is the following Confucian quote:
“Attack the evil that is within yourself,
rather than attacking the evil that is in others.”
― Confucius
Do you sometimes catch yourself feeling envious, or jealous in your dealing with others? I have this week been pondering the origin of these thoughts. The world now has an overload of information at its fingertips. Information about what we might aspire to, what we might desire and seek to obtain.
We can never really possess anything, on a permanent basis. In truth, we have but a loan. A short term or long term loan. So why the feeling to have what another has been fortunate to possess on their short term loan?
Where does it stem from?
Join the discussion by leaving a comment below.
Proverbial Thursday – now posting on Fridays at Something to Ponder About
I find there to be profound wisdom in proverbs, sayings and quotes and I marvel at the way they are so succinct in communicating messages to the reader. Mostly anonymous, they come to us from past generations and from across cultures. They speak of the experiences of lives lived and lessons learned. Quotes, like proverbs, make us think more deeply about something.
Each Friday, I post a Proverb or Saying and a Quote that I find thought-provoking.
I hope you will too.
No river can return to its source, yet all rivers must have a beginning.
Native American Proverb
Are we really simply talking about a river here, or our inner yearning to be a child again, to be free of responsibility, to be carefree, unburdened and spontaneous?
We may not be able to start completely over, when things go badly, but we can start somewhere, and from there move forward. Do you agree?
Or could you think of another metaphorical application for this proverb?
The quote I have chosen this week also refers to the theme of childhood.
Children are not things to be molded, but are people to be unfolded.”
Jess Lair, Author
What do you make of the words of Proverbial wisdom this Friday?
Are they Something to Ponder About?
Join in the discussion by leaving a comment. I would love to hear your thoughts.
Imagine if you had a box, and it could contain anything, anything at all.
But the contents are things one can not pick up.
What would be in your box?
Painted Daisy box
This was an exercise given to primary school children, aged 7- 12 years. The text in BOLD italics is mandatory and the rest, part of one’s own fertile imagination.
A great exercise for kids to use their thinking powers to fill an imaginary box. It focuses not on the usual kid’s wish list of Xbox or Barbie Dolls, but rather on abstract thoughts.
A gift that is free.
I pondered about what would be inside my box, which I call:
The Moose’s Box
I will put in my box –
the freedom of children to dream and aspire.
the fortitude and perseverance of a nanny goat,
the sound of boots stomping in freshly laid snow,
the anticipation of holidays and travel.
I will put in my box –
empathy and altruism,
emotional intelligence and joy,
extra doses of joy and happiness,
extract of a young pup’s exuberance.
I will put in my box –
a shifting fog,
wild windy weather,
a thousand giggles,
and the sky at twilight.
I will put in my box –
a black unicorn hiding behind the rainbow
and the toes of a fish or the fins of a horse.
My box is –
shaped like a moose’s horns
and is a kaleidoscope of colours and sounds
tied with imaginary bows of angel’s breath.
In my box –
I will understand the meaning of life and find contentment and love.
What would you put in your box?
Just a little Something Abstract to Ponder About – What could you put in your box if the contents could not be materialistic?
Summer in Australia means school aged kids are under their parent’s feet at home, yet, paradoxically, many parents actually look forward to School holidays. Why? One reason is that holidays means a slower start to the day, no school run stress, no juvenile screaming they can’t find their hat/maths homework/bus-card, and most significantly, no need to prepare school lunch boxes, each and every morning.
Day after school-term day, many parents over-stress and almost tear their hair out trying to provide a nutritious, yet appealing school lunchbox for their kids, particularly during the high school years. As any parent with teens knows, asking adolescents to consume anything remotely wholesome and not packaged in four layers of plastic or laced with half a salt mine, is tantamount to offering them a piece of buttered cardboard and likely to be received with this enthusiastic response:
[Source -dailymail.co.uk]
So how does home-cooked food, originating from the household pantry or fridge, compete with the highly addictive products of multinational food companies or their derivatives, with the myriad of flavourings, salt and sugar content? How did we get to this situation?
What society thought school lunch should look like –
What teenagers thought school lunch look like –
What parents think school lunches are like –
With the impending start of the school work year, I decided the school lunchbox had to be not only visually appealing, but tasty as well and, it had to tick most of the ‘healthy lunch’ boxes, (no pun intended!) So I studied a few basic muffin recipes and came up with my own savoury muffin that I am confident even the fussiest teen would be hard-pressed to refuse, (and if he/she does, there is always bribery and corruption as Plan ‘B’….)
The real secret to this recipe is that it looks like a sweet cake in appearance, (first duplicitous manoeuvre) and, secondly, it tastes like the junk food on offer at most food outlets, (but is actually good to eat).
Enter the Savoury Muffin to Die for……
Amanda’s Savoury Muffins
The rosemary and sea salt topping really stimulates those adolescent taste-buds and once your teen has shown a positive interest such as, “What’s that you are cooking, Mum?” comments, and eats a few here and there: then and only then might I suggest slowly, (over a few batches), decreasing the amount of sea salt used as topping, to improve the nutrition levels further. Easy does it though: Teen noses and taste buds can easily detect the covert operation you might have in mind.
The list of suggested fillings, is one that you can add as many or as few of these as you have on hand, or in the pantry, without unduly affecting the outcome of the recipe.
Experiment to see which flavors teens like best.
Savoury Muffins
[Makes 12 serves]
Ingredients:
2 cups Self Raising Flour
(or 2 cups Plain flour with 4 teaspoons of baking powder added)
1 teaspoon Baking Powder
80 g Butter, melted
1 tablespoon good quality Olive Oil
1 Egg
1 cup Milk ( I use low-fat)
1 slice Ham – diced
1/3 cup grated Zucchini (courgette)
1 clove Garlic, minced
1/3 cup Baby spinach, diced
1/3 cup cooked Pumpkin (roasted or steamed)
1/3 cup Capsicum strips, roasted (can use jarred variety)
80 g Feta cheese ( crumbled)
Toppings:
20 g Feta cheese ( crumbled), extra
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon Rosemary
Sea salt
Optional extra or substitute fillings:
1 tablespoon Olives, sliced
1 tablespoon Parsley
1 teaspoon Mint leaves
2 sticks Spring Onions, sliced
1/3 cup Sun-dried Tomatoes
grated carrot
Pineapple Pieces – (drained well)
Method:
Pre-heat Oven 200 degrees
Mix Flour and Baking powder in large bowl.
Mix melted Butter, Oil and Egg and Milk in separate bowl.
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix gently with a wooden spoon.
Fold in the rest of the ingredients only until just mixed and no lumps of flour remain.
Fill a Muffin pan that has been lined with paper Muffins cases to 2/3 capacity.
Sprinkle Parmesan, extra Feta and a mixture of Rosemary and Sea salt on top.
Bake for 20 minutes or till golden brown on top.
Cool on a wire tray covered with a fresh tea towel to prevent muffins drying out.
These muffins freeze well wrapped individually or in a seal-proof container.
The perfect morning tea or lunch snack for those on the go.
P.S. If you are really daring or have one of those ” I’ll eat anything as long as it’s food,” kind of kids: Round off the lunch box offerings with some hummus, hard-boiled eggs and fruit.
Filling the lunch box give parents ‘Something to Ponder About’
Early development and exploration is all about putting items into the mouth in order to explore the world. Some kids will want to eat everything in sight, despite being well fed with nutritionally sound meals. Why is this?
Having something in our mouth is a very primitive, calming tool. In utero, babies often suck their thumb, and after birth soothe themselves by being bottle or breast fed. But some have a greater need for sucking, mouthing objects, chewing or eating everything in reach. This may be a dummy or bottle teat, a toy or spoon, their own clothes (shirt collars and ribbons/ties are often chewed), and in older children, it might be a pen, or gum.
Chewing is really a way for infants and children to self-soothe, but also a way for them to seek out additional opportunities to get oral information about their environment. Some children have a stronger than average sensory need for this kind of feedback and it is these children who might continue to exhibit chewing, in an attempt to regulate their sensory systems.
Chewing on items also provides a lot of deep pressure and ‘proprioception’ * (sense of body position in space), especially to the jaw and facial muscles. Some children will chew in order to gain this understanding of their jaw’s positions in space, particularly if they don’t get this feedback easily through eating, or if they are not able to tolerate solid food which requires chewing, (due to age or health status). In addition, children who suffer anxiety, and some of those on the autistic spectrum might display a greater need for feedback of oral sensory information than most of the population and in doing so are attempting to regulate their sensory systems or self-soothe.
Furthermore, I have noticed some children can become a bit ‘obsessed’ with food, and tend to over-eat despite not being hungry, looking for anything to eat at all hours of the day. Food seems to occupy their every waking thoughts. They are frequently overweight. Is it possible these children are also seeking extra sensory input through eating?
Proprioception: body’s position in space as well as the force we are exerting or the speed of a movement. A child that seeks out body awareness information might pat animals with too much force, frequently bump or push other children, or frequently break things by pressing or pushing too hard on them.
What can be done?
Excess chewing/eating:
If Kids are chewing on a spoon or constantly eating – an alternative might be to replace the object with crushed ice, cubes of ice, or very crunchy, chewy foods, depending on the age and health status of the child.
Throwing items (Casting):
As well as pushing, pulling and squeezing items, throwing items helps provide the muscles and joints with additional body awareness information and proprioceptive input. Throwing toys may give a child an increase in the amount of ‘body awareness’ information through his arms and shoulders, much in the same way other children get this information from running or jumping. If they are not able to run or jump, they might try to attain it through other means. This has implications for the mainstream behavioral management for these children.
Proprioception (and balance) can be increased by:
Weighted products – which may assist in providing additional information to the muscles and joints, providing extra body awareness information.
(Lap buddies, weighted blankets, weighted toys. – but never more than 10 % of body weight)
Vibrating items – this provides input to the muscles – these are often used in therapy or special needs settings
Swimming
A wobble board
A Lycra suit or wrap gives significant sensory input due to its stretch properties
Lots of cuddles, squeezes and hugs – a great way for parents to help (and you can never overdose on hugs).
Children such as these are not just being “naughty.”
To me writing is currently a release. I haven't quite decided to what degree it is I'm searching within my words, yet, I feel something matters somewhere, right?
