All posts tagged: Children

“Being” Over “Doing”: Advice for Meaningful Family Life

Published by dmcblog

By Leslie Gossett // There is a billboard on the interstate here—an advertisement for a popular gym. It says “More ways to do it all.” There is a picture of a happy–looking person doing various gym activities. I feel nauseated every time I pass that billboard. Perhaps it’s different where you live, but here in the San Francisco Bay Area, this is the pervading culture. Life is becoming more and more about doing and less and less about being. I work closely with many families here in this area. What continues to surprise me is not how busy they are, but how much they complain about being busy while having no support for changing that. Schools are increasingly more demanding of not just the student’s time, but also of family time. Sports practice, music rehearsals, and after school activities happen every day of the week. Games and performances take up weekend time. And many children, tweens, and teens have more than 2 hours of homework each day, in addition to their rehearsals and practices. Parents …

Seeing Children and Family Life through the Eyes of Goodness

Published by dmcblog

By Leslie Gossett // Have you ever noticed how often humans operate from the premise of there being a problem? Whatever is happening, it is not the right thing. There is something to be fixed. The coffee isn’t strong enough. The temperature is too hot. It’s too cold. We are hungry. We are stuffed. We are tired. We don’t want to go to bed. It’s completely endless. We even take this extreme into how we relate to other people. We begin to view them through the eyes of wanting them to be different. We want them to look differently, feel differently, and act differently. This desire can be subtle. And usually it happens most toward those closest to us, especially our children. Children are constantly and exhaustingly bombarded with admonitions of, “stop that,” “sit still,” “be quiet,” “we don’t say that,” “you can’t do that here,” “stop crying,” “stop running,” “don’t put that there,” “act like a big girl,” “don’t be a baby,” and the list could go on. Adults are not exempt from such …

A Mother Reflects on Family Camp at SMC

Published by dmcblog

By Rachel Seely// Family Camp at Shambhala Mountain Center is a special time to appreciate and value ourselves, our children, our families and friendships, and our culture. Taking the time to focus on this aspect of life in a contemplative and supportive atmosphere is a gift that I will always cherish. And one I believe my daughter will as well. Join us for Family Camp 2018! Click here to learn more >> Having well over a hundred children on the land brought blessings of wakefulness and freedom. Immediately the children developed their own relationships to each other and the land. Parents often marveled at the feeling of being held by the land, which is no small feat when in the process of letting go physically and emotionally of our children. The land became a cradle for the kids to explore the phenomenal world in a safe and accommodating manner. Kids ran freely within the space, with only the occasional reminder to be quiet near the main shrine tent and lodge rooms. They were always on …