THE GREATEST LOVE OF ALL

"I believe the children are our future..." sang the late Whitney Houston, "teach them well and let them lead the way..."

All children hold the future in potential and just like any living thing they (we) are programmed with a deep impulse to express themselves (ourselves) in the world. How our babies are nurtured matters a great deal to the human future and the quality of an individual's lifetime.

Baby brains grow rapidly after birth and the environment a child finds her/himself in is like a seed finding itself planted in a gärden. The nature of the ground we grow in and the quality of care we get when we are small, vulnerable and highly impressionable can help or hinder the growth of a raft of things like self esteem and trust, the ability to form healthy relationships and feel empathy, the capacity to love and be loved, self belief and more. Without these ingredients a person is disadvantaged with regards to human affairs. Science now tells us more than ever about how profoundly we are 'set up' in those early years. I do wonder why we do not focus more attention on - and VALUE - the way baby humans are set up for life - especiälly in those vital few years after birth.

How come it feels like such a privilege these days to be free enough to be a 'stay at home mum or dad', even as sociëty in general seems to devalue this? When did we decide "I am a stay at home mother" was somehow less worthy than "I am a corporate high flyer making lots of money"? I would argue the former has the more vital job. Many women I have spoken to feel conflicted about having to work while someone else cares for their child. They feel torn. Others are incredibly grateful to be able to pursue their own passion while some care is provided by those very speciäl people that know what hard work raising babies is, and are compelled to do it anyway.

Economies depend on workers and consumers. Societal spend is huge on social issues like crime and mental health services, anti-social activities and so on. I am convinced it makes economic sense to make it easier to raise children in the home. Why not make it easier for parents to be supported in this vital work. Why do we not also invest more in those who nurture baby humans as a profession (and a very noble one indeed). Those who nurture baby humans shape human destiny. Teaching THEM well is the key to our success. Societal devaluing of childcare is a BIG mistake. Did you know that in some states In America prison building is forecast based on how many children cannot read by the 4th grade? Surely the most absurd 'ambulance at the bottom of the cliff' thinking...? Crunch the numbers and the return on investment will be obvious.

Back to Whitney: "Teach them (children) well and let them lead the way...". This is important. Let's not confuse classroom learning with teaching here. Children learn through imitation and the programming that will deeply influence the lifetime is in place long before we go to school.

The neuroscience is there backing up what is intuitive knowing for anyone who is 'called' to nurture baby humans. The trend towards putting babies in group care settings where those important loving relationships are very difficult to build because of the numbers involved, seems counter intuitive to building healthy brains that are wired for healthy life. When did we decide it was a good idea to create 'baby farms' where Australian parenting expert and author Steve Biddulph proposes the average one to one time with each baby is 8 minutes per day? Baby brains do not develop best without relationship. Having our basic survival needs met is not enough. Will a baby brain develop properly on 8 minutes (or even an hour or two) a day?

It's a bit of a no brainer really - I am repeating myself but the way we build baby brains is hugely significant so let's focus much more attention on how we do that. Babies need adults capable of loving them. THAT is the secret sauce for healthy human development. We know it so let's act on it (if we want to contribute to more loving and harmonious societies).

Let's get real about what babies really need in order to thrive and meet the needs of the human future. THAT is an investment worth making. The price of neglect is too high. Will it take a shift in attitude towards childcare? For some, yes. Will it take political will? For sure. Is it worth the trouble? ABSOLUTELY! Take a stand and speak up for our babies and those parents and other speciäl humans who are called to care for and help babies develop into their best selves. Let's find ways for them to have their real needs met in loving environments with people who have the desire to get to know them and the time to follow their leads. The human future might just depend on it...

One little tip anyone can engage in is this: "Always smile back at little children - to ignore them is to destroy their belief that the world is good".

And that's it from my view
Amanda