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Butterflies and Helicopters

July 9, 2014

I’m doing as much as I know how to attract butterflies to my garden. For example, I’ve planted a butterfly bush and milkweed plants. I do this because these plants are supposed to attract butterflies and bees, and I know butterflies and bees are essential to producing vegetables.

One of the greatest miracles any person can observe is to watch a butterfly emerge from a cocoon. It was as wondrous to me last summer as the first time I saw it occur when I was a young child, when I first saw a butterfly emerge with damp, shriveled wings. 

I was told then that we shouldn’t interfere, that we shouldn’t help the butterfly escape the cocoon and shouldn’t help spread the wings. We had to let the butterfly struggle. We were instructed that the struggle would give strength to the wings, and that would be essential to the butterfly’s survival.

Childhood is much like this, but too often helicopter parents intervene and interfere with the growth process and, ultimately, weaken their children’s ability to fend for themselves, to overcome adversity and to take flight.

Helicopter parents endanger our butterfly children.

Go With It

April 30, 2012

One of my counterparts in another state asked me last week, “How do you do it?”  He meant, how do I find time to prepare two blog postings every week; and he also meant, how do I find topics for 104 postings each year; and he also meant, how do I go about the actual writing?

As for finding time, it’s no problem; because writing helps me think.  It helps me clarify and prioritize.  And going public with these thoughts helps me be more certain that I’m committed to the ideas.  For me, writing daily is as important as breathing deeply.

As for finding topics, it’s rarely a problem.  I find subject matter in what I read, what I hear and what I observe in everyday life and worldwide travel.  And I’ve discovered that the richest sources for writing about school sports are often found the furthest from school sports.

And as for the actual technique, I go about it this way:  I try to provide a plain circle, and then invite readers to color it however they wish, to use any shade they prefer, to color outside the lines if they think that’s most beneficial to their situation.

When we were children we were praised for coloring within the lines and utilizing the appropriate shades for sun, sky, grass and flowers.  These days I just want to provide a blank circle and ask, “What can you do with that?”  Not dictating what readers should do, but inviting readers to take an idea and do with it what they will where they live, work and play.

At least that’s what I want to do.