Childhood is precious for many reasons – not the least of which being that it’s often the only time in our lives when we can play, learn and be pleasure-bent without having to work for our survival.
That’s why I have long held the view that my parents owe me a year of childhood.
You see, I was a precocious child, early reader and dubbed “gifted and talented” at a very young age (don’t worry, it all seemed to balance out by high school).
I attribute it to the fact that my mom was an early childhood educator, so spending time with her was better than any preschool for getting me off to a great start in life.
Needless to say, by the time I got to kindergarten in Savannah, GA, I was quite advanced and already reading. Imagine my boredom watching my kinder-peers learn their alphabet when I could already read! So, my parents and the teacher agreed to skip me up a grade. They didn’t ask little, carefree me if I wanted my childhood fast-tracked; they simply did it.
That decision put me right into first grade in the middle of the school year, an experience so traumatic that 50 years later, I can still vividly remember how awful it was.
Suddenly, I was five years old in an academic classroom, not a kindergarten play space. I cried all the time, asked to go home and constantly wanted my mommy. Eventually, I adjusted – and I was clearly ready academically, even if I wasn’t prepared emotionally at the time.
Ever since, I’ve been a year behind my peers when it comes to the important things like growing boobs, getting our periods, landing our permits, learning to drive and becoming legal to drink. I was always the young one in my friend group, and it sucked in many ways.
Growing up, I often complained to my parents about the repercussions of their decision. Having had this experience, I would never advocate for a child to skip a grade. The social implications are greater than parents can imagine. There are other ways to enrich and encourage a gifted child. Let kids be kids, man!
So, what do you think – do my parents owe me a year of childhood? I could see this playing out in a number of ways.
- They could foot the bill for me to take a year off from work and travel the globe (ha! Talk about the ultimate dream)
- They could give me an annual vacation/petcare allowance so I can travel and “be a child” for a portion of every year (This, too, is a wild dream on my part)
- We could collaboratively come up with some other wonderful way for them to somehow give me a year of my magical, beachfront childhood back.
If you got this far without realizing that I’m kidding, then yes, I am! Of course, I don’t begrudge my parents their decision to skip me ahead one grade, even though I love to gripe about it. And I truly don’t feel my folks owe me anything – they gave my brother and I an amazing childhood with tons of international travel adventures and unforgettable experiences.
I do feel that kids who skip a grade are losing a year of precious, magical childhood – but I don’t claim to know what to do about that. Maybe it explains why I love to play, be whimsical and embrace childlike treasures even now, as an adult. Is this my way of making up for the fact that I lost a year of the real thing?
Anything after 50 counts as a second childhood anyway. You heard it here first: embrace joy, whimsy and childlike pleasures every chance you can. Whatever you loved or longed for as a child, find a way to do it now. Life is too short and precious not to.
Let’s all embrace our inner kiddos and allow them to shine in whatever time we have left! That’s my plan and I’m sticking to it. If you have a better idea, I’d love to hear it.
