Love Our Children

I'm attending the NAEYC convention in Washington D.C. It has been very enriching so far besides the shopping and sight-seeing!

We had the privilege of visiting some renowned preschools in the D.C. area earlier this week and learned how early childhood education is regarded here in the US. During our network lunch sessions, we understood from the locals that President Obama has a clear focus on early education quality and has given a prominent position in the President's education agenda. In fact, he's the only president who has given early childhood education any focus.

Wow, that sounds like giant steps for an industry that has always taken a backseat next to the formal schooling. It is wonderful to be in the forefront of such dynamic changes in the lives of millions of children around the world.

But as I sat at the conference hall this morning, I felt a tug at my heart strings and my mind started to wander off. The emotions just welled up as the speaker expounded on the importance of building a loving, nurturing environment for children in their early years. With so much focus on the early years' education in this country, it makes me sad to watch news of children being shot; raped and strangled in the one week we've been here. It is rather ironical to confront images of such shenanigans on TV each morning as we get ready for a conference that celebrates children.

To say this is a conflicted world is an understatement. How can people; parents in fact, do such things to their own offspring? In the case of a 5-year-old girl who was raped and strangled, it was her mother who offered her up for prostitution. What?? I hear you say. There are so many parents in this world who can't love their children enough yet there are those who are depraved at so many levels that I don't even have an adjective for them. Sigh.

Emotions aside, I still believe in the greater good of people who put their hearts and souls into working with children. People who come to school each day to make a difference to these little ones. People who nurse a scraped knee, hug a bruised soul and assure a child it's OK to make mistakes. People who do not mind the long hours, the pay or the hard work. These people are the a child's whole world and these are the people who will make a difference in this world.

NAEYC should not just celebrate children. It should celebrate teachers and everyone who loves children.