Jude has seemed so much bigger these past few months. I’m well aware that the bulk of that transition has more to do with my mindset (Jude… a big brother! The mind reels!) than anything else, but also… he has rounded that amazing corner that marks the shifting of five to six. And oh, it is bittersweet indeed.
He does “school” each day, the actual contents of which varies depending on his passions and direction. He joins us without fail for Morning Time, and loves singing hymns and read-alouds best of all. He builds with Lincoln Logs during our read-aloud. I love watching for his long, thoughtful pauses as he digests what he’s hearing. He will freeze, hand mid-air, and make the sweetest little face of concentration, sometimes for a full minute. I want to remember those moments always.
“No, let us be content to be the handmaids of Nature for the first five or six years, remembering that enormous as are the tasks she sets the children, she guides them into the performance of each so that it is done with unfailing delight; for gaiety, delight, mirth, belong to her method. If a child chooses to read and write before he is six, let him, but do not make him; and when he does begin, there is no occasion to hurry; let him have a couple of years for the task.” The Parents Review, Volume XXIII
“We begin the definite ‘school’ education of children when they are six; they are no doubt capable of beginning a year or two earlier but the fact is that nature and circumstances have provided such a wide field of education for young children that it seems better to abstain from requiring direct intellectual efforts until they have arrived at that age.” A Philosophy of Education, page 159
I see a blossoming love of music in my sweet little man. He’s also quite proud of his growing reading skills. He is still as tenderhearted and kind as he’s ever been, usually being the first to rush in when someone is hurt or sad. His spirit of empathy is so, so strong, as is his desire to be a helper. Baking with me is one of his favorite things to do, and he relishes being the first one up on certain mornings and having the chance to measure and mix one-on-one with Momma. I can’t say I don’t treasure up those times, too.
In just a few weeks he will transition to the role of protective older brother, something I know he will take very, very seriously. Jude is nothing if not sober. Shortly after that, he will turn six, and those last vestiges of little boy will begin to melt away as his body, mind, and spirit do the hard work of climbing the hill towards the man he will someday become.
But for today, he’s still my baby. He’s still sweet, and cuddly, and content to spend hours reading stacks of Little Golden books and making his way through Sick and Jane readers. He’s still just a kindergartener, just five. And I’m more than happy to enjoy him right where he is.