In Part One of this three-part series I speculated about changes that may come to our societies, our customs, our behaviors, our thoughts, and perhaps even our DNA and our souls due to the necessity of self-imposed isolation and governmental lock-downs. I saw beauty and hope, miracles, springing up all around me, everywhere I looked.
Procrastinating on publishing the remainder of this series has not only moved us forward in time but also revealed changes that I did not and could not foresee, making this a necessary add-on which is not so much about isolation but about re-enforcing the bonds we share with our loved ones during this time of isolation and upheaval. Wake up America, the devil is calling our name and he is hard at work building up the evil hatred that lives in all men’s hearts.
That being said, I do still believe what I wrote previously is accurate and I am willing to recognize that there are two sides to what is happening in our country and world. Of course, there always has been. I was, at the time of publishing Isolation Pt. 1 #lockdowneffect, choosing to only acknowledge the good, the uplifting, positives while blindly turning my face from the evils that might occur. Isolation Pt. 2 talks about the beauty, hope and miracles
In part one, while pondering what changes may occur I featured two sweet videos of girls playing clapping games. In this piece I want to illustrate and remind us all what is at stake when we use hateful words and act callously toward one another. Children’s innocence is pure beauty and it is important to realize that warring with one another is the devil’s play, a game called Conquer & Divide. Wouldn’t you rather we see our kids living their childhoods like this:
Wouldn’t you rather all children love and play with one another rather than living with suspicion, fear, and hate for each other?
Clapping games build memory, strengthen hand-eye coordination, it helps with math and language skills, and deep within us, they teaches empathy, but that’s not all. By nature, these games are silly and because they make you laugh together a lot it is a great way of building friendship and strengthening bonds with one another.
If you are worried about your kids wanting to teach these to their friends, may I suggest you teach them the game “Sevens” for just that purpose? An only child can play a solitary version or a teacher can guide their entire classroom in play at their desks without ever having to make physical contact with one another and yet, it still has all of the benefits and silliness I outlined above.
These games are played all around the world. They are played by boys and girls, very young children to adults, as well as parents with children. You can play the traditional hand or full-body versions of these games. They can be played with as few as two people or as many as, well, a classroom full of people. They can be played at any time of day or night, indoors or outside, with or without electricity. So, if you’re looking for a new family obsession while you’re living in quarantine, this is great fun. Here is a great teaching video of 6 different clapping games, the video and sound quality is excellent. There is no reason game night cannot be every night. We need those nights now more than ever!
So, let’s try and build strong bonds with those we love at home. Let’s try to make peace with our neighbors, coworkers, friends, and communities. There are positive ways to change the world. Let’s do it that way instead of stealing the childhoods from our kids by entering into a civil war.
God created us to be social beings and touch is essential (I’ll go into that in Part 3.) We actually do need one another for survival. We can make change! Your actions do make a difference! Let’s do it using methods that are both wise and loving… for our children.
The delightful photograph (CC0) was shot by Caroline Hernandez and acquired through Unsplash.
© MemeesMusings/B.L. Memee, 2020. All rights reserved.
