Is he good?
What question is almost always asked by curious adults on first meeting a new baby – you’ve guessed: “is he/she good?” Is it just my weird sense of humour or wouldn’t it be lovely to respond: “NO!…he/she is the most wicked baby in the whole wide world!!!!! Thank you for asking……..” Perhaps a more empowered and honest response would be: “He’s a baby and therefore an expert at letting us know when he needs us to do something to keep him feeling safe, so….yes he’s good!”
Babies are programmed to survive so they have an inbuilt alarm system and boy is it effective. So how about we celebrate when a baby uses the skills they are born with and, rather than shhhhh shhhhhush-ing, we acknowledge how hard it must be to come into a world where you have to rely on others to meet all your needs. When feelings of discomfort and fear are meet with approval and care, we can all feel safer.
Apologies for what might sound like a rant – you wait ’til next time though when the topic could be: Babies, the great manipulators!
