I recently asked my young
adult son to send me a photo of his sofa and the narrow spiral staircase he has
to go up and down to get to his fourth floor flat. (There is no lift).
Used to his mum’s
occasionally odd requests he duly obliged and here they are just for your
viewing:
I’ve been thinking a lot
recently about sofas and spiral staircases and how life likes to present us
with such things. And I’ve been thinking how differently two people can view
the exact same tricky situation they might find themselves in.
How optimistic or positive
you are can depend on a lot of factors. Often past experiences and the
influences of significant others play a major role in the amount of
self-confidence, self-belief, determination and resilience people develop. But
reactions can also be quite mystifying, extraordinary and unpredictable too.
Sometimes being told something can’t be done or won’t ever happen simply makes
you even more determined. Fortunately.
I say fortunately because
there are a lot of extraordinary achievements
that would never have been achieved had pessimists or realists or just
those with less imagination and determination been listened to. Think of Stephen
Hawking who overcame a form of motor neuron disease to make remarkable
scientific contributions, Franklin D Roosevelt’s determination that got him
through polio and paralysis, or deaf and blind Helen Keller who defied all the
odds to become a world renowned speaker and author.
Then there are others like
amputee Marlon Shirley who set world records in athletics and the now annual
Rickshaw Challenge in which children and young people face all sorts of personal
challenges to help others.
What these inspiring people
show is that when we believe that obstacles are interesting detours rather than
complete roadblocks then we can often find a way.
“It isn't the mountains ahead to climb that wear you out; it's
the pebble in your shoe." said Muhammed Ali. I like that. In other words, often, it's not the mountain, metaphorical or otherwise, that stops us, but our attitude towards it and how much power we give to niggling, negative thoughts that tell us it can't be done.
And this can apply to all the everyday, ordinary
life problems, annoyances, tricky outcomes and decisions too. Most of us,
thankfully, have lesser obstacles and demons to defeat. But all of us, at some
point, face disappointments, rejections, anxieties, loss: mental and emotional
demons.
I didn’t see my son and his
friend tackle the obviously minor and light-hearted challenge of getting a huge
sofa up four flights of narrow, winding, spiral staircase. But I did hear the
determination in his voice before he attempted it that a way would be found. I’d loved to have seen the
triumphant look on his face when they got it to the top. I hope he keeps his enterprising and optimistic
attitude to things in life. I have a feeling he will.
So what does this have to do
with authors or writing or books? Believing in yourself and finding an inner
strength or power is often a theme in children’s fiction. My favourite kind of story is one where
characters discover, against all the odds and their initial beliefs, that they
have an inner power that was there all along just waiting for them to realise
it. But difficult situations both big and small, are real parts of real life,
not just things in stories. So stories with characters who work out how to
ignore the pebbles and climb the mountains, as it were, inspire and teach in a
subtle way. Don’t children’s authors
have a wonderful opportunity and important part to play in helping children
discover and see this? I think so.
Because sooner or later we
all find that, aswell good and happy things, life is full of all kinds and types of “sofas and spiral staircases” too.
Hilary Hawkes
Photo credits: sofa and staircase: Matthew Hawkes, others pixabay
2 comments:
Love that comment about ignoring the pebbles and climbing the mountain. So easy to slip into a negative frame. And yes let challenge our readers. And I loved the analogy. I have a 45 year old son with an esp awkward staircase and a huge leather couch. And we are going through the same debate. My initial response is knee-jerk and though he has long, long, long ago, left the nest, still feel the need to solve it for him... !!!
Thanks, Dianne. Good luck to your son with the couch :) Does make you wonder what the builders were thinking though doesn't it?!!
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