the tables turn

Everyone we meet has the potential to enlarge our world. We may learn something we knew nothing about from their talents, interests, and culture. And through their circles of acquaintances it can expand again.

This process is particularly interesting when it begins to come from your own children. After nearly 20 years of teaching, guiding, and  sharing with our children what we hope will be the knowledge and skills to live a contented, happy life the tables slowly turn and they begin to influence us with their discoveries, their chosen interests, their circle of friends.

Last year daughter Robin spent 9 months at a place called Botton Village in England. It was a Camp Hill community dedicated to the care of mentally handicapped adults. A six hundred acre estate nestled in a storybook setting in the moors of Yorkshire. We were lucky to visit her there this summer, our first time abroad. This wonderful experience would not have happened without her initiative and invitation.

Sunday we put our son Dylan on a plane for Senegal, Africa for a semester of study abroad. He will be staying primarily in Dakar, the capital and western most point of Africa. He is posting stories of his experience to a blog. We look forward to seeing Senegal through his eyes.