 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|
 |
 |
Imagine the Possibilities. Imagine the Joy. Imagine the Extraordinary.
"The man who has no imagination has no wings. "
Muhammad Ali
By: Mary Savacool
A young child's world is a crazy blend of fact and fantasy. This was illustrated for me the other day when, before heeding my final warning to get her shoes on, my five year old daughter turned to apologize to her invisible prince saying, “I have to leave…my mom really means it this time. Please don't leave the ball, I'll be back as soon as I can.” It made me chuckle. Then it made me think, “wow, the prince and I existed together there for a minute”. So now I'm in even deeper awe of the intricate workings of her growing mind, and I'm recognizing my responsibility to remember not to expect her to instantly snap out of her pretend world.
This is especially hard for me on hectic days, or when I'm carrying too much on my shoulders. I mean that literally. Today I had four grocery bags, two filled Easter baskets, my luggage-like purse, and a wet umbrella pulling on my weary arms when both of my daughters noticed the worms slithering across our wet pavement. They needed to capture them. Immediately. As they hunched down in the rain, dragging their long skirts in the muck, they begged me to get a bucket. Every instinct in me was working against the worms. But I put the bags, baskets, purse and umbrella down and picked up a bucket so the worms could come inside and live with us for a while. I'm certain that these worms, in my daughters' minds, had happy faces and sweet voices and bright stripes. And I'm pretty sure they were saying, “Hi! I'm Slimy! This is Slippery! Will you let us come inside and play? We'll love you forever!” So we adopted them as pets. (Then promptly forgot about them until I went back into the mud room and found they had escaped and the cat was playing with them…but that's a whole different life lesson).
I believe that it is imagination that separates the great from the mediocre – in all walks of life, from world leaders to Nobel Prize winning scientists to our best teachers. Nurturing our children's imagination and helping it take flight might be one of the greatest gifts we can give. And as we help secure a successful future for our kids, I imagine we become the best parents we can be.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Imagination” could very well be this ExtraordinaryMommy's middle name.
When I grow up, I want to be Mary Savacool. 
This mother of two delightful little girls, 5 year old Anna and 3 year old Audrey, has a gift for playing with her children that most ExtraordinaryMommys would love to mimic. It is this gift she has agreed to share with you, as imaginative play is not only good for your children; it is fuel for YOUR soul.
Prior to eagerly accepting her position as a Stay at Home mom, Mary spent 11 years in Marketing and Advertising, specializing in integrated programs and market analysis. From home, she has successfully developed a Bank Marketing Freelance practice and currently works as a Marketing Consultant to the Financial Services Industry.
Happily married for 8 years to husband Scott, Mary views Mothering as the greatest gift, biggest challenge and largest responsibility of her life. Together, she and Scott “are committed to cultivating strong roots for Anna and Audrey while developing their wings so that they may fly.”
