"I consider Gay and Kathlyn to be my teachers." -John Bradshaw
What Dr. Goodall knew at age 3
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What Dr. Goodall knew at age 3
I saw Dr. Jane Goodall speak a couple of nights ago. She is most famous for her work with the Chimpanzees and her conservation efforts to protect the African wildlife and forests. What I didn't know is how she ended up in the forest in the first place.
Her story is moving and remarkable and I love how it supports my belief that if we listen to our children, they will tell us all we need to know.
See, Dr. Goodall knew at age 3 that she wanted to live in the African jungle with animals. Her favorite books were Tarzan and Dr. Doolittle, she interpreted the squirrels in the schoolyard, and her most powerful early scientific experiment was at age 4 when she spent a day squatting in a chicken coop waiting to see how an egg came out of a chicken. She told everyone at age 4 that she was going to go to Africa and live with animals.
And that is exactly what she did. Against all odds.
Dr. Goodall was born in London England between two World Wars. She was a girl. And poor. Going to Africa to study animals was just inconceivable for all she told, so they laughed.
(And that part of the story I think is very common -- how many people do you know who had a childhood dream and were laughed out of it?)
But what Dr. Goodall had was a mother who believed in the power of dreams. She never laughed, never reprimanded her for hiding out in a chicken coop for a day without telling anyone where she was. She told her to believe, work hard, and to seize all the opportunties that came.
And look at what the world gained.
Thank goodness for parents who listen to their children and believe in the power of their dreams.
This is the kind of parent I want to be.
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