Not Clay

In the 1930s, parents of an eight-year-old girl received a note from school, ‘We think she has a learning disorder. She can't concentrate, she is always fidgeting.’ So they took her to a specialist. After listening to the mother, he asked her to step out so that he could speak privately with the restless girl.

 He turned on the radio and stepped out too. The girl was on her feet, moving to the music. The doctor told her mother, ‘she isn't sick, she's a dancer. Take her to a dance school.’ The girl walked into a dance class and found it full of people like her. People who couldn't sit still. People who had to move to think.

 She auditioned for the Royal Ballet School and had a wonderful career there. She eventually founded her own ‘the Gillian Lynne Dance Company’. She has been responsible for some of the most successful musical theatre productions.

 Gillian’s story was shared by Ken Robinson at the 2006 Ted conference. Speaking on the topic ‘do schools kill creativity’, Robinson pondered of how somebody else might have put her on medication and told her to calm down. He insisted that we should see our children for the hope that they are.

 The potential of the child is stifled by educational systems that see limited avenues. There is undue pressure to conform to set paths. They are asked to calm down and stay still. Elders may play the role of a potter who moulds the clay to his desired shape and form. But the child is not clay. It must be allowed and encouraged to find its way and discover the inherent creative capacities.

 Heed… the child is not clay

Help it find its distinct way!

 ~ Pravin K. Sabnis

 MONDAY MUSE is now into the 17^th year (since the first Monday of 2004) written by Goa based Experiential Life Coach, Pravin K. Sabnis. Send your feedback to 91-8698672080 or unlearning.unlimited@gmail.com