“We can think of ourselves not as teachers but as gardeners. A gardener does not ‘grow’ flowers; he tries to give them what he thinks they need and they grow by themselves.” ~John Holt
I love this metaphor, Wendy! I had a similar experience with a kiwi plant that I was trying to train on a trellis and then I gave up and let it go where it wanted to. Interestingly, it grew much faster when I left it alone to do so instinctively! Much like my children on their learning path.
What a great analogy. I think it applies to ourselves too. I'm particularly drawn to what you wrote about cutting back new growth to let older plants focus their energy on ripening the fruits they're nearly finishing growing. Thank you Wendy.
I love this metaphor, Wendy! I had a similar experience with a kiwi plant that I was trying to train on a trellis and then I gave up and let it go where it wanted to. Interestingly, it grew much faster when I left it alone to do so instinctively! Much like my children on their learning path.
What a great analogy. I think it applies to ourselves too. I'm particularly drawn to what you wrote about cutting back new growth to let older plants focus their energy on ripening the fruits they're nearly finishing growing. Thank you Wendy.