The title and illustrations of this article are selected from "A Seagull, a Flock of Seagulls"
A seagull and a flock of seagulls
The rookie baby's bedtime reading tonight is "A Seagull, a Flock of Seagulls." It is one of the "Mini Sticks" series "Life Is Really Fun".
On the blue surface there are two parallel islets, one of which has a flock of seagulls and the other is empty. A seagull suddenly flew up from the flock of seagulls and threw a message to his companion: "I have had enough of you." Goodbye, I'm going to stay by myself! Then it flew headlessly to another island.
What's going on? The rookie baby asked curiously, "What's wrong with this seagull?" Is it like me, when playing games, it is criticized by children for not following the rules? ”
Continuing to turn down, the seagull reached its own island, looked around, and said satisfactorily, "Well, this is good!" ”
Then the picture zoomed in sharply, and it began to say to itself: "A bunch of fools on the wall, making endless fusses." There was no way to think about that island! Then they started to complain and complain: the other seagulls had no brains, and they crowded together to step on its feet, and the food was never shared...
This seagull complains about the disadvantages of living in groups while enjoying the freedom to be alone. It thinks that leaving everyone is the most correct choice: "Hey yo yo, it's so good to stay by yourself, it can't be better!" “
It also complained more and more: "Those guys are rude, talk nonsense all day, and can't do anything serious on that island!" Then it lay flat, comfortably pulled out a book and began to read, enjoying the free time.
I didn't expect the good times to be long-lived.
Suddenly there was a "click" -
This seagull was swallowed in the stomach by a crocodile!
It turned out that the seemingly calm island was actually a crocodile lurking quietly! A group of seagulls on the nearby island saw that something was not good and immediately flew away.
The story isn't over yet. It turned out that another calm island was also a large hippopotamus lurking. The crocodile said to the hippopotamus, "They're gone!" Hippopotamus revealed its teeth and said, "There's nothing better than that!" ”
Do you want the freedom to be alone, or do you want the safety of living in groups?
The ending of this story is a bit "scary", but the rookie baby is not frightened. He put on a "I already knew" look: "Why is this seagull staying by itself?" If you were with everyone, you wouldn't be eaten! ”
I laughed dumbly, thinking about it too – the favorite toy of a four-and-a-half-year-old rookie baby is "people"; he loves to play with children, and the last thing he needs now is time alone. He used to say, "I don't like a person the most!" I want my mom to accompany me! I want to be with you! ”
But for me, the opposite is true, and the most relaxing moment of my day is to be alone and quiet. After reading the picture book "A Seagull and a Group of Seagulls", not only did the children find resonance, but also let the adults have further thinking.
"Mom, I don't want to stay by myself, it's not fun at all!"
"It's normal, people are social animals, but also social animals."
I am reminded of a saying by the famous Greek thinker Aristotle: "The solitary dweller is either a beast or a god." This means that ordinary people have neither the power of beasts nor the mana of the gods, so people have been social animals huddled together since ancient times, and if they want to leave the group to live alone, they are equivalent to seeking their own death.
I told the rookie baby the meaning of this sentence, he seems to understand, but he is very insistent on his opinion: "In short, it is to be fun with everyone to be safe!" This seagull did something wrong! I told him seriously, "Everything is not so absolute. Aristotle was a famous thinker, and there is truth to this statement, but it is too absolute to say that living alone is a wrong thing to do. This seagull will be eaten by crocodiles, and the fundamental reason is because it is too proud to notice the dangers around it, rather than just living alone and will definitely be eaten. ”
While he was still thinking, I also expressed my needs while he was still thinking: "For example, my mother sometimes needs her own time, reading books or just in a daze; she also needs a quiet space for herself." Can you understand? Can you not argue with your mother at this time? ”
Mom, why do you sometimes want to be on your own?
After I said that adults sometimes need independent space and time, the rookie baby asked the question: "Mom, why do you sometimes want to be on your own?" Will be very lonely, ah, are you not afraid of being eaten by loneliness? ”
Wow, I was instantly startled by this philosophical question, touched his small flat head, I decided to use the example in the picture book to tell him: "Just like in this story, if a group of seagulls are together, everyone lives together, there are problems to solve together, there are difficulties to overcome together, there are dangers to take care of each other, it will be safer; if a seagull stays alone, it will certainly be more free than in the group, but it may not notice the dangers that appear at any time." At this time, we have to decide for ourselves, compromise the security and danger of freedom, which one will you choose? ”
The rookie baby replied without hesitation: "I choose to be with everyone, but Mom, you choose to stay by yourself, right?" ”
"That's right, it really depends on the stage of life, and everyone's decision will change as the situation changes." Everyone naturally wants to explore the outside world, but also needs to leave themselves room to explore the inner world. What Mom said may be a little esoteric, but it doesn't matter, you will slowly understand it when you grow up. It's time to sleep! ”
Closing the picture book, the rookie baby quickly fell asleep, still holding this copy of "A Seagull, a Flock of Seagulls" in his hand. I gently pulled the book out and put it back on the shelf. "A Seagull, a Flock of Seagulls" makes us experience once again a moving pleasure, that is, through interesting picture books, we can expand the tentacles of thinking, contact the expanded world, and also provide space for adults and children to think.
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This article is written by Wei Si
Lovers of reading, lovers of writing, collectors of fun with parenting