This is not about Chile and it’s not really about New York, and maybe you will forgive me or maybe you will aggressively click elsewhere because you prefer to gaze at your own navel than watch me pontificate on my own.
I recently made a trip to the states and one afternoon, my sister’s kids and I went to a playground made of brightly colored plastic so they could run up and down things and slide and whatnot.
My niece is nine, already a señorita and a little unimpressed by slides and the like, so while she deigned to go down the slide a couple of times with her brother, she later peeled off to show off her superior (and long-legged) climbing skills and ambled off to redo her hair.
Which gave someone an idea.
And I doubted, I did, as he took one step forwards and two steps back, and then two steps forward, and one step back.
And he stepped some more. Check out how tightly his left hand is gripping the side of the slide.
Looking a little awkward here, but it looks like he’s going to make it.
A little lip biting and shuffling and determination pay off, and the moppet (I’m not allowed to call him that any more) surprises everyone, especially himself.
And when I saw the pictures, I thought, that’s probably how we should all live our lives. With grit, determination, and last but not least, joy for when it all pays off. And don’t forget the underbite.
Though maybe with a little less blurriness.
How adorable! Those are some great shots. I can't believe you managed to get so close, where were you? I'm headed to NY, this week and will say Hi to the slide for you.
Perserverance pays! My kids love to climb up slides… bare knees help a lot in that regard. Cute niece and nephew!
Flygirl, so close? he's my nephew, since he was tiny I've been snapping pics of him. We were at a playground near my mom's house on Long Island.
Annie, perserverance indeed. He didn't use his knees, and I was so impressed with him, but more importantly, he was so impressed with himself!
Lovely photos. So much we can learn from kids. Really!
Thanks Lola, I have surprised myself by how much I like taking pictures of kids just being kids. It's super to get your omment and it was great to get to meet up and yammer in NY!
J's excellent "turn out" is definitely helpful in climbing up the slide!
Great pix. I always love seeing the pictures you take of my kidlets, especially when you're taking pictures when I'm not there. I like that little window into their "independent" lives!
schvester, go to flickr for more, or I can send you some. I was so sure he wasn't getting up, I even made the niecelet stop pestering, saying "I don't think he's going to be able to do it." And he did. Reminded me of me at that age. Something about swimming.
Could take pictures of them all day long!
Great post Eileen- the things we can re-learn from kids! Not only that perseverance pays, but this should also be a reminder to encourage and not be the one saying "you can't" or "you're not going to make it"!
Margaret, I know, and I'm always the one saying yes, you can! This just caught me unawares, and my niece es lo mas metiche que hay, and I just wanted her to stop pestering him, and it seemed like the way to do it. I regret it already, and probably always will, and my nephew will probably never even blink when I tell him the story ten years from now.
Plus, cute kids!
Isn't it wonderful how kids, especially older toddlers, give nary a thought to the laws of gravity or physics? Less wonderful in newly licensed 17 yr old drivers, BTW. No preconceived bias that the incline is too steep, the surface is too smooth, the curve is too… curvy or my body mass to quadricep strength ratio is insufficient. Just, "I'm HERE and I want to go THERE." Having observed your nephew's dogged perseverance personally I know it has little to do with grippy sneakers and his subtle turn of foot (a biomechanical advantage?) – concentration and tenacity are his recipe. You might as well Photoshop out the playground slide and insert one of your mighty Chilean peaks – same result.
Great post and cute pics! You're nephew is adorable.