Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/broken-into-wholeness/5023965/
All the King’s Horses and All the King’s Men? Listen Up. Early Childhood Educators Have
News for You
Look up! What’s going on? Why is Humpty Dumpty teetering atop that fence? Auditioning for “Good Egg Bachelor?” Practicing extreme sports? Escaping cookie batter?
Imagine a child’s response to hearing Humpty Dumpty’s tale for the first time.
Tales, myths, and fables can make zero sense to children, until the very rhythm of the story or the power of its message prevails. Children hearing Humpty Dumpty for the first or 31st time learn: When you break, you stay broken. “Cracked” becomes your life sentence. Not even the king of the land, his minions, or their beasts can save you.
What if, instead of inflicting an either/or death sentence on Humpty Dumpty, we ask children: How would you like Humpty Dumpty’s story to go?
- Let’s make Humpty a parachute!
- Move the slide over to him!
- Can he grow into a chick instead?
- Use Grilla (Gorilla) Glue! Paint him blue!
What if something broken becomes a thing of great value? Henri Nouwen advises: “In our brokenness, we can become a source of life for others” (The Wounded Healer, 1972):