The World of ‘Wonder’

On one of the regular days when I trouble Arav (my favourite mommy thing to do). Teasing him, troubling him, pulling his leg……all sorts of naughty mommy love. By how I behave, I am less of his mom and more an elder sibling, who’s usually busy troubling him (same goes for Biscuit too).

He mentioned that Biscuit is dull today, to which I responded, “Com’on! How come? She has been so active, been going around loving both of us and hugging us (me more 😉 ha ha)“

Suddenly, Arav asked, “How was hug invented?”

Clueless, as I am, on all of his questions, but, this one surely astonished me more than it troubled. 

Completely loved the idea of how a young brain thinks, and we, as adults program them to only look for scientific inventions or something else of importance, either to show-off in front of peers or help them excel in studies.

Kids learning human aspects of life is as important as their education / knowledge, if not more. What the world today needs greater than inventions, is compassion and human touch. Definitely, science has brought us this far, but, haven’t we somewhere lost the human part of us? Don’t all of us at different times feel very mechanical in life? Don’t we have the feeling of being disconnected and being disoriented sometimes?

With our lives being surrounded and led by technology, it’s a really important and interesting experience to go back to our human experiences often. And, teach the kids to think like that too.

A few of you may know, I taught a kindergarten class of 4-5 yrs olds last year, and the one thing that used to pain me the most was solely parents pressurising them to almost be engineers at that time, pressure about perfect handwriting, perfect craft, perfect drawing, perfect colouring, perfect oratory skills and outstanding general knowledge. It was very very evident in the kids’ behaviour, that it was not what they were comfortable with, since they used to have panic attacks, aggressive behaviour patterns and immense emotional disturbance. At what age, only 4? Do they deserve such a childhood?

I had always been less than an average student, which I used to be ashamed of, as a kid. But, as I have grown into an adult, I don’t mind accepting I have super poor General Knowledge and not much of bookish knowledge too. It doesn’t make me any less, any more, I take pride in the person I am.

But, the question remains, isn’t the real journey of life in being human?

I can only request you to always ask yourself each time you pressurise your child for something, if that is going to matter once he / she is may be 30, 40, 50, 60, 70…. If NO, let them go as per their comfort; if YES, please make them understand the need for it by telling them stories and not by comparing to other kids. They need to learn compassion, not competition.

But, most of the time, please let them be, play, dream, have fun, make funny stories & jokes, read….. that’s exactly when they learn the most, at their best.

The wonderful world of wonder is the one all of us left behind long back to engage ourselves into a more educated and informed one, in which wonder got lost as we became more learned.

These days, I love being the ‘Alice in Wonderland’ with Arav and it takes us to places we never get to discover otherwise. That amazement, joy, fun, laughter….. is beyond description. Physical Touch and emotional expression are very important parts for all living beings, most importantly for children.

Feel like sharing,; ‘Arav’ as a word means ‘someone at peace within self / calm’; that bit took me completely, while we debated a few other names for him, before he was born. He somehow embodies it really well!

Thank you Universe for giving me a child who is sensitive, compassionate and thinks of different kinds of life, before he decides for himself. And, is inquisitive to know about the human world as much as he wants to know the other side of the world.

I cannot ask for anything else, but, be a grateful mother of Arav and Biscuit.

Well, going back to the question Arav asked me. Here are some facts for you about ‘How hug came into being?’ Frankly, not much is available about it on the internet.

1. The origins of the word are unknown but two theories exist. The first is that the verb “hug” (first used in the 1560s) could be related to the Old Norse word hugga, which meant to comfort. The second theory is that the word is related to the German word hegen which means to foster or cherish, and originally meant to enclose with a hedge.^[1]  (Source – Wikipedia)
2. Originated 160 million years ago. (Source – Quora https://www.quora.com/Where-did-the-hug-originate)
3. Physical and emotional benefits: (Source – http://kulraj.org/2014/09/09/science-of-hugs/)
   • Reduced crying
   • Improved sleep
   • Sense of body ownership
   • Reduced anxiety
   • Correct production of growth hormone, leading to correct physical development
   • Increased empathy for others as they grow up.
   • Reduces blood pressure
   • Healthy heart rate …….and many more
4. In battles, hugging and handshaking were first started as a way of showing your enemy that you weren’t going to kill them because you had no visible weapons in your hands or on your body. You could get close enough to strangle someone in a hug, but if your hands were kept strapped to the back of someone else by your arms then you’d present no danger. That’s why presidential candidates half hug and clutch each others’ arms at a debate as a way of showing they only come armed with words. (Source – Pennlive Blog)
5. You get also free hugs @ https://www.freehugscampaign.org
6. There is a new profession called ‘Huggers / Cuddlers’ who get paid to hug or cuddle people, a result of the loneliness in the world.
7. Companies are making garments that will make you feel hugged and help your body release the happiness hormones.

Given our living population (humans & animals), the last few are things to question deeply as a society.

Spread love, hug, be happy!

Love

Div

#divyamadhur #loveyourself #faceyourfears #motivation #experiences #spreadlove