Estelle Hayes of Under a Pink Moon At just three years old, my daughter already has a team of teachers in her camp. Miss Valerie shares her love of musical instruments, Miss Melissa helps her master a somersault and Miss Lucy guides her through the politics of the playground. I’m thankful for Emerson’s cadre of trusted women; they are teaching her lessons outside my area of expertise. But I’ve also seen that I serve as her most influential teacher in the scope of everyday life. Each morning she watches me get ready for work and asks, “What are you doing with that paint brush?” And when I show my impatience as she fights with me while putting on her jacket, she tries to read my emotions asking in a way only a three-year-old can, “Why does your face look like that?” These questions allow me to see that through her eyes I’m literally painting make-up on my face, toddler style, teaching her that before I leave the house I’m covering my face. I also realize she’s learning how to handle frustration and impatience through my
reactions. It’s these moments when I am grateful for her young perspective. Her attention to life’s little details allows me to become both the teacher and the student. I’m learning through the innocence of a toddler that I don’t have to frown when I am frustrated and perhaps I don’t have to coat myself with paint in the morning. I have choices and so does she. Of course my hope is that Emerson ultimately grows into her best self. A girl who is confident that her world is filled with choices, and not just the big ones of who to love, what to study and where to work, but the little everyday choices we all face. Knowing she can breathe deeply through the frustration, choose how to decorate her body (or not) and where to focus her precious energy and unique gifts. I hope I am teaching her that in every moment and in any situation in life she has the power of choice and that the choices we make define ourselves.
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