One recent night, my three-year-old granddaughter asked me to draw a picture of her as a “fairy warrior.” This was immediately after she’d asked me to draw a picture of her as a queen.
She is an inquisitive child, to put it mildly, and she urged me to tell her the stories behind the drawings.
It was close to bedtime, and we were both tired. And though I extricated myself from the queen story rather quickly, the fairy warrior request was another matter entirely.
First, I don’t recall hearing of fairy warriors before this so it sort of threw me momentarily for a loop. But as I improvised a response to her request, I felt myself warming to the topic.
Since the fairy warrior was of course a stand-in for my granddaughter, I found myself inventing various scenarios whereby she could act valiantly on behalf of her villagers. In one part, a vicious wolf showed up at the edge of the village, determined to eat some of the children.
The fairy warrior used her large staff-like wand to ward off the wolf and banish it to the wilderness where it could do no further harm. The wolf simply disappeared in a swarm of harmless bubbles.
In another part of our story, the fairy warrior gathered cherries from a cherry tree and chocolates from a chocolate tree and bananas from a banana tree to feed the hungry people of her village.
Then, best of all, she led all the younger kids, including her baby brother, on various expeditions to the mountain near to where they all lived, exploring the natural wonders and bringing back descriptions of what they’d seen to entertain everybody back home.
Thinking back on this after she went to bed, I knew there was nothing particularly original about any of the stories I’d spun, but that also they were instinctively based one way or another in my aspirations for her future.
As she matures, I hope she uses her considerable intelligence and charm for the good of others. Maybe that will involve fighting off the bad guys in some way or feeding the hungry. Or maybe it will be as a scientist or a reporter, helping others in her community better understand the world outside of their immediate surroundings.
After she went to bed, I couldn’t help spinning more scenarios for her fairy warrior self because I knew what would be coming. Sure enough, the next morning there she was, ready to go: “Tell me some more stories about me as the fairy warrior, Grandpa.”
This could be the start of something special for us as she does her job and I do mine. She is pulling an imagined future out of me and I’m helping her craft a set of shared hopes and ideals.
It’s called being in a family.
TODAY’S NEWS (51):
Putin mulls recognizing separatist eastern Ukrainian regions (AP)
Putin orders Russian forces into separatist regions in Ukraine for ‘peacekeeping’ purposes (WP)
Memory of 1938 hangs heavy in Munich as Ukrainian president calls for action (Guardian)
U.S. officials warn a Russian invasion would ‘repress’ and ‘crush’ Ukrainians (Politico)
Blitzkrieg or Minor Incursion? Putin’s Choice Could Determine World Reaction. (NYT)
Satellite images show new military movements by Russia (Aljazeera)
Biden agrees ‘in principle’ to summit with Putin if Ukraine is not invaded (WP)
US says it has credible information about Russian 'kill list' in potential Ukraine invasion (CNN)
The US should compromise on Nato to save Ukraine (Financial Times)
Bond Between China and Russia Alarms U.S. and Europe Amid Ukraine Crisis (NYT)
Putin ratchets up Ukraine grievances in TV broadcast with top security officials (CNN)
Ukraine crisis live: Putin to decide today on recognising breakaway regions as independent states (Guardian)
Canada’s protests settle down, but could echo in politics (AP)
After Trucker Protest, Canada Grapples With a Question: Was It a Blip, or Something Bigger? (NYT)
UNICEF to pay stipend to Afghan teachers as ’emergency support’ (Aljazeera)
If Joe Biden Doesn’t Change Course, Afghanistan Will Be His Worst Failure (NYT)
Talks in Vienna on reviving the 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and world powers have made "significant progress", Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said. Separately, Iran's top security official Ali Shamkhani said talks with European negotiators were ongoing and would continue while negotiations with the United States were not on the agenda because they would not be the source of "any breakthroughs" (Reuters)
The Science Behind Why Children Fare Better With Covid-19 (WSJ)
Kids-Last COVID Policy Makes No Sense — Kids should face fewer restrictions than their parents, not more. (Atlantic)
More contagious version of omicron, BA.2, spreads in U.S., fueling worries (NPR)
For White-Collar Workers, It’s Prime Time to Get a Big Raise (WSJ)
U.S. census director says bureau is strengthening 'firewall' after Trump meddling (NPR)
Vast Leak Exposes How Credit Suisse Served Strongmen and Spies (NYT)
Credit Suisse on the defensive after dirty money data leak (Reuters)
Poet Joy Harjo Named Bob Dylan Center’s First Artist-in-Residence (Pitchfork)
A year after Texas cold spell, study shows renewable energy could avoid blackouts (WP)
Portugal drought worsens, raising fears for crops and water supply (Reuters)
Scientists discover third rock around alien sun (CNBC)
50 years after Nixon's historic visit to China, Beijing calls for better ties (NHK)
50 years after Nixon visit, US-China ties as fraught as ever (AP)
It’s Time To Cancel Presidents Day (Politico)
Young mom among string of missing Native women in California (AP)
Snapchat launches a real-time location sharing feature (CNN)
‘We are afraid’: Erin Brockovich pollutant linked to global electric car boom (Guardian)
Hank the Tank, a 500-Pound Bear, Ransacks a California Community (NYT)
Newly Discovered Dinosaur From Argentina Belongs to a Rather 'Armless' Family (ScienceAlert)
Missing dog Zoey reunited with owners after 12 years (BBC)
Risking Their Lives, for Little Pay, to Guard India’s Forests (NYT)
Birds Are Stretching the Boundaries of Language — The calls and songs of some species have quite a lot in common with human speech. (Atlantic)
A college says it found an old clump of George Washington’s hair. Hooray!
— The next time you’re about to throw strange hair away, think carefully, and remember this story. (WP)
Hollywood relies on China to stay afloat. What does that mean for movies? (NPR)
Michigan's Juwan Howard defended his pride in ugly scene, must pay for actions | Opinion / USA Today)
Here comes Tuesday, 2-22-22, a.k.a. Twosday. (It can mean anything you want it two.) (WP)
What Love Meant in 4500 B.C. — The Copper Age nomads on the Eurasian steppes might have understood the Beatles. (Atlantic)
Global health champion Dr. Paul Farmer has died at 62 (NPR)
Research Suggests Life On Earth Began Full 20 Minutes Earlier Than Previously Thought (The Onion)
No comments:
Post a Comment