St. Columba Bay

Last week at camp the campers "visited" St. Columba Bay. I learned that St. Columba does not have sand on it's shore, but rocks and pebbles.

 The kids made stepping stones for the children's garden at the church and then spent some time in reflection.  This is a pretty heavy concept for 4 year olds.  My friend A. ran this marketplace. She had each of the kids pick up two small stones. She played music and asked the kids to close their eyes and listen to the world around them. To see the water, to feel the wind and water on their face (she even spritzed them with one of those water bottles that have a fan attached), to listen to the music, to breathe in and out slowly.  Then she told the kids that when people come to St. Columba Bay that they would pick up two stones. One was to throw back in the water and it was the bad stuff...hurt feelings, a bad morning, mean things people may have said, or even something mean they may have done to someone else. The other stone was to keep and it was all the good things.  As an adult I found this really cool. Especially it happened on the same morning that I was really, really late to camp. So I threw my bad morning back into the "bay."  My group of 4 year olds all participated, but no one spoke up, nor were they expected to. But I still wonder how much they got out of it. Did they get the concept?

The next morning, Boogie went to St. Columba Bay with his group.  That night Hubby asked him what he did at camp. Boogs was all excited about St. Columba Bay. He excitedly told Hubby about the bay and throwing away the bad stuff and keeping the good stuff. Hubby asked what Boogie threw away.

Boogie's reply:  I threw away all my nights that I couldn't stay dry. I kept all my dry nights.

Wow! He really got the concept. A part of me was super proud that understood the concept and that he took it to heart. As teachers, that's what we want from our little students. That they walk away with new knowledge or new insight.  Another part of me was a little sad. I knew that his inability to stay dry at night was frustrating to me (especially when he leaked out of his pull-up and I was changing sheets in the dark in the middle of the night, though I always said, "It's okay, Sweetheart, we'll just take care of it."), but I had no idea that it was this frustrating to him, too!

The following day, I told A. about it and she told me that no one else shared in his group, but Boogie had volunteered information about his bad and good stones. She was fortunately able to give him some good counsel and tell him that his body will be ready when it will be ready and not to worry about it.

Well, I think between her good counsel and his ability to physically let go of his frustration was all Boogie needed. He's been dry most nights since then! I think we are dry 5 out of 7 nights! That's the most that he's had ever!  I'm trying not to get too excited or to pressure him. I'm trying to give him props and congratulate him when he's dry (without pressure) and to say, "Hey, no big deal on the mornings that he's not.  But to see that he's let go of his frustration is pretty wonderful!

Thanks, A. for all of your help!