Take a look at Montessori practicial life activities and you will see two distinctive categories. There are the handwashing, pouring, sweeping, window washing activities. These are things that I do on a regular basis (well, my smudgy windows might argue otherwise).
And then there are those activities like silver polishing, flower arranging, and I would even venture to say, setting the table correctly. These are the lost arts of living well, because somewhere in the mess of modernity, they got lost.
They are, on the whole, impractical.
No one seems to care if you don’t know which side of the plate the fork goes on. And when faced with a bouquet of flowers picked up at Trader Joe's, very few take the time to do more than plop it into water.
So why am I interested in having my son learn to do all of these impractical practical life activities? Well, there are the reasons that all the educators give:
· They develop both fine and gross motor skills, bringing gains in purposeful movement
· They promote independence, self-discipline, and concentration
· They help in understanding social contracts and responsibility
· They show a respect for and ability to interact with the environment
These are all convincing reasons, but they don’t speak specifically to polishing silver or a pair of shoes. You could omit the polishing practice from your practical life list, and still accomplish these things.
They don’t make the case for flower arranging. Above all else, I need there to be a strong case for flower arranging because I love it so much. And as Rémy tried a flower arranging practice for the first time this past weekend, I came up with the argument.
My case can be summed up in one word… beauty.
The notion of beauty is one that I’m keen to impart on Rémy. I want him to be able to sort through all of the chaos and piles of junk around him, to zero in on those things that elevate his soul. This is no easy task.
To understand beauty is to understand what makes a thing valuable. Not necessarily economically valuable, although money always finds a way into these things. I’m talking about the amount of value it brings to your life.
Flowers may cost $15, and not have a high economic value. But with thoughtful effort they can be transformed into an arrangement that brings a smile to your face and brightens your spirit all week long. That is incredibly valuable.
Objects that you own should, as Marie Kondo elegantly puts it, spark joy. What this means to me is that you should be able to clearly recognize the value and beauty of the items you come in contact with every day.
I believe that these impractical practical life activities zoom in and focus our child’s attention on well-crafted objects, and help them start to see the value of things that surround them. They help engage the child in a mindful exploration of beauty.
And what we value, we must maintain. We must honor and care for that which is beautiful. This is a lesson I am most eager for all children to learn, as it is a path forward to a cleaner planet and a less cluttered existence.
So I will continue to find objects that display a sense of craftsmanship, and hopefully spark joy when Rémy interacts with them. Then he and I will practice taking care of these objects, and treasuring them.
Eventually, he an I will visit a glass blower or ceramicist and he will know what to look for when he picks out his very own vase. And when he brings it home, he’ll know exactly how to care for it and the flowers it holds.
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