Lovingly, your son

It is so good to be back with my world of bloggers.  Awhile ago I was visiting Sunshine. She reminded me of Gilad.

In July, 2000 he wrote me a letter (You know - the real kind with pen and paper).

He said:

Dearest Tamar,

... I thought I would wait for the Grammies to say some things but I might wait indefinitely for that ... I'll have you know that you are my first musical influence. From an early age I heard you play and sing. Not only that but your approach to the piano, to music (to life), is a great inspiration to me. There's a positive freedom about it that I admire.

While I am fairly adept at the piano, there is a feel and a touch of your playing that I can't emulate. It is original. That is a mark of a musician, so don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

Lovingly,

Your son,

Gilad

I don't know about you, Mom of Sunshine, but I carry his letter with me everywhere I go, always, since the day I received it.

Comments

[Adriana Bliss]

What a beautiful letter! I wonder now what my children will remember from their childhoods.

[Tamar]

Yes, I love that letter!

It is amazing to think of what children remember. We have only to think of ourselves - because we all were children once - to know how different we all are in how we experience our lives.

[Jean]

Ah, 'we have only to think of ourselves'. If everyone did that the treatment of children would be rather different from some of the prevalent models... That willingness to think of ourselves at their age is what makes a 'good-enough' parent, child-carer, teacher, I think.

[Jean]

Ah, 'we have only to think of ourselves'. If everyone did that the treatment of children would be rather different from some of the prevalent models... That willingness to think of ourselves at their age is what makes a 'good-enough' parent, child-carer, teacher, I think. (that and some other things, I don't mean duplicating our own negative experiences, of course).

[Tamar]

Jean,
This is exactly what I am working on as a teacher educator. You hit "my" nail on the head! My first book relates to our attitudes of bias and prejudice. The next one is pretty much about what you write here. And, yes, I understood that you meant not "duplicating negative experiences" before you corrected it. But others might not have. Your comment is so important for me, here. Thanks so much.