Between my 18th and 22nd birthdays, I changed my major six times, transferred universities, tried out a variety of jobs and several philosophies, fell in love, got married, and began my career. Those years were a period of incredibly rapid growth and change in me.
It occurs to me that most lives are like that. We experience plateaus in which life remains fairly steady, but those plateaus are punctuated by events—like graduations—that create rapid growth and change.
One such period may be precipitated by a challenge. Our child is diagnosed on the Autistic Spectrum. Our spouse’s biopsy reveals a malignancy.
We immediately move into a period of rapid learning. Within days, we know more than most about supporting children with autism. We learn all we can about chemotherapy, radiation and other treatments for cancer. We develop expertise in a big hurry, desperate to be equipped for the challenge.
But happy events also introduce periods of intense learning. I’ve observe that childbirth ushers in maybe the most intensive learning period—both for parents and for children. The hours, days and weeks following a baby’s entrance into our world present a whirlwind of new information.
Training in a hospital a few years ago, I was preparing to demonstrate the amazing capacities of a newborn. A young mother had agreed for us to demonstrate with her baby. When I went into her room to visit with her, she explained to me changes she had seen in her baby.
This mother said that when her son was first born, he squeezed his eyes tightly shut. “But now,” she explained, “if I talk to him nicely, he opens his eyes wide and looks right at me!”
Leaving her room, I realized I forgot to ask when her son was born. Checking with a nurse I learned that this little fellow was exactly 4 hours old.
In this period of rapid learning, the mother came to understand the way she spoke to her baby facilitated his capacity for interaction. Her baby learned how to focus on the face and voice he already loved best.
Whether your family has a high school grad, a family member facing a challenge, or a new baby, hang onto your hat. The learning has just begun.
