How can we help our kids who are growing up in a time of constant pressures – to do this, to be like that, to study this, to excel at that – and whose childhoods are slipping through their hands without the ‘luxury’ of just being kids? I find the overscheduling and the demands to be social, happy, smart, polite-to-the-point-of-robotic to be really quite sad. It’s something I am conscious of, yet every once in awhile something will slip out of my mouth that totally contradicts this. Sometimes when I listen to the words I throw at my kids in moments of panic (Will my kids be liked?) or times of fear (Will they ever learn to….?), I am amazed that my words and my values are not aligned. How does that happen?
Ignite the Light: Empowering Children and Adults to be Their Absolute Best begins by taking you on a journey to your childhood. Vicki Savini expertly examines how our core beliefs become engrained in the cells of our consciousness as children and how these beliefs play out as we grow into adulthood. I loved her phrase, ‘What happens in childhood doesn’t stay in childhood.” The first half of the book is truly eye-opening and gives the reader an understanding of why he/she turns reacts to situations or turns to particular vices. I can see how this part of the book can help break an adult free from the binds of their childhood. And, the best part is, with this knowledge, an adult can arm the children in their lives with a healthier toolkit.
Naming ‘7 essentials’ for being emotionally and spiritually healthy adults, Savini places a great emphasis on our responsibility to teach these essentials to the young in our lives by modelling not simply by telling. Which means we have to do the work, too! With carefully selected personal stories interwoven with her anecdotal research as a life-long learner and teacher, Savini opens the reader’s mind to the possibilities that lie within our reach. And she always brings it back to our children and students who are the real beneficiaries of a healthier planet.
Though not a parenting books by conventional means, I highly recommend this book as a MUST-READ for those of you navigating the sometimes tricky terrain of parenthood; it’s an engaging read that prods at important issues we may be accustomed to sweeping under the rug. The second half of the book, focusing on the 7 essentials, offers quick and practical exercises that will add to your experiences with these pages.
Grab this book for yourself, your siblings, new and seasoned parents and of course, your favourite school teachers. They will all benefit personally, and so will the children they influence, consciously or unconsciously.
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Disclosure: The links above are my affiliate links – if you make a purchase through them, I do make a small percentage. Thank you for supporting my work! I also received this book from Hay House for free in exchange for an honest review.
