Don't hurry. Don't worry. Be sure to stop and smell the flowers. This simple homily encapsulates the nature of childhood as it should be in an ideal world.
I observed a harassed parent attempting to speed up the progress of her daughter in a town centre park. 'Come on, we haven't got time to smell the flowers today.' This was a mum who had clearly taught her child that flowers were to be enjoyed and that they did, indeed, have a smell.
We have developed an interesting view of childhood and what is and is not appropriate for our children's needs. No wonder there are silly, meaningless discussions in the popular press about working mothers, nursery provision and the 'right kind' of childcare. We have deskilled a whole generation of parents, so that the birth of new babies brings worry and anxiety, often with insufficient joy to counteract the natural highs and lows of bringing up children.
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