The soul emerges . . .

I MADE A COMMENT Sunday to a fellow church member that a great reason to be a parent is the privilege of “watching a soul emerge into the world”.

The phenomenon manifests itself in a child’s face from day to day. In the same manner that language is slowly refined, facial getsures become more and more refined, suggesting that behind that face the wheels are turning, and either consciously or unconsciously, a child learns to ‘act’ with their face.

Here’s a really simple case in point, and you can try this out yourself if you’re a new parent and keep some kind of diary: Take note of the times your child moves their eyes, or some other part of their face without moving their head.

I’ve realized that newborns and infants don’t have that much fine motor control inside their heads and faces, but over time, this too is learned and practiced. And I would submit that the thinking and reasoning process itself is similarly developed. What isn’t too clear to me is how one teaches their child to think.

Perhaps we teach them how to feel first.