02 Dec Sitting Up Tall
The girls were playing school with their stuffed animals. As the teachers, the girls stood next to their chalkboard easel and led a math lesson. Their students were arranged in a semicircle, and each stuffed animal had a piece of paper and a crayon for proper note-taking. The girls took on different voices as the animals responded to addition and subtraction problems.
Right in the middle of 32 + 95, one of the animals – a fuzzy little llama – toppled over from his seated position and landed on his face in the middle of the circle. “Lorenzo the Llama!” Emma exclaimed. “We are in the middle of a lesson! What is going on?”
Lorenzo the Llama seemed to be having a hard day. Over the next 10 minutes, he flopped over again and again. Each time, the girls gently attempted to put him upright.
Because of the frequent disruptions, Ella said the lesson needed to pause and that Lorenzo was in need of a big talk. Lorenzo was placed in the center of the circle, in his seemingly preferred flopped-over position. Ella and Emma joined the circle of animals, forming a full circle around the wobbly llama.
I listened as they went around the circle, and I was surprised by what I heard. Rather than words of annoyance and frustration, each animal said something good about Lorenzo. The sloth mentioned that Lorenzo had a beautiful long neck, which was perfect for sitting tall. The big brown dog commented on Lorenzo’s strong muscles, which would help him sit. The orangutan reminded Lorenzo how he had done such a nice job of sitting during the earlier story time.
Lorenzo did indeed get a big talk. But it wasn’t a talk intended to shame or punish him. Instead, it highlighted his positive qualities, recognized his earlier achievements and gently reminded him of the strength within him.
After all the animals had offered their encouragement, Lorenzo was moved back to his spot and the girls resumed their math lesson. And wouldn’t you know it – Lorenzo stayed upright for the rest of the pretend school day.
Just like Lorenzo, we sometimes find ourselves in situations where we are repeatedly flopping over. We tend to sit a little taller and feel less wobbly when others bolster our confidence by noticing, recognizing and reminding us of the strengths and positive qualities we possess.