Firstly, let’s set our intention. One possibility: we dedicate this writing/reading to loving the world as it is (and aligning with it) in the service of a specific child, or children, that you the reader now consciously choose.
Individuation, or growing “up” toward recognition of all the parts of ourselves, hinges on feeling solid enough within ourselves to explore our world and encounter others with a sense of security, friendliness, curiosity and good cheer.
If we are two years old, and feel safe enough, we will venture forth from our mom’s leg and check out the sand-box. And we will run back and “touch base” again and again until we come to deeply trust that our safe place is now in our heart, and not only in our mom’s leg. When we are safe and secure (and old enough) we let go of blankie or teddy, we transition from attaching to “objects” to interfacing more and more with real others.
Some kids are naturals at making friends, others need a bit of coaching. You know your child and their developmental level, so you can translate the following ideas into words that they can make use of… but our central approach is to commit to learning and growing through our relationships with our children (and each other). In other words, if we want our kids to expand their trust and ways of thinking, we must expand our trust and ways of thinking.
Privilegeofparenting's Blog 