Thank you Jessica for your reflections on a recent article shared on Facebook. https://www.mother.ly/child/your-childs-social-skills-in-kindergarten-are-more-important-than-their-academics.

Yes, it’s so true, as Jessica says as teachers and parents we need to be reminded of this all the time. Which then brings me back to the sages of this world reminding us to stay open to reminders, new ideas and accepting that we are NOT always right, often wrong or better yet willing to listen to another point of view, reflect on possibilities, or incorporate new ideas.  Maybe we need to consider at the bare minimum we need to accept that another has a different opinion/ideas than our own and acceptance of our own ‘state of flaw’?

Its often hard to  stay open, honest and flexible; to be willing to consider change and adaptation. Recently I recommended Mark Manson’s irreverently titled books. Initially when I saw his titles I thought oh yeah, what’s this trash mouthed sensational guy trying to sell? Yada Yada gimmick writing. Well after seeing the book several times and turning my head with chagrin, I thought, “be open, look at the back cover”, then I waded in and scanned a bit more. I was intrigued and hooked. Well I was pleasantly surprised at how humble, wise, compassionate and yes positive (remember his second book’s secondary title reflection was a book about hope).

This harkens back my self directed learning on the topics of servant leadership and coaching. This journey along with my self proclamation and passion to be  the goodwill Fairy, Dazzle, and work with my father, Frank, aka Sparkle, in presenting workshops to ‘set the table and light the candles’ for teaming and offer recognition for strengths and accomplishments, evolved into the writing of The Executive Gardener and Fairy (which by the way I always said took on a life of its own and became my father’s apology to my mother). After writing this business parable I wanted to look at it again, so I registered with Humber College (https://creativearts.humber.ca/programs/school-writers/creative-writing-fiction-creative-non-fiction-poetry.html) to take my manuscript to another level. I was coached by Jonathan Bennett in the rewrite of my story. He told me, “I want to hear the dialogue between Frank and Lilly. Lilly lives! This story is going to be a distant cousin to The Executive Gardener and The Fairy.” Well, it was a distant cousin filled with spicy dialogue, poetry at the end of every chapter and attempting to chronicle Lilly’s journey with breast cancer. Unfortunately due to constraints on time Jonathan was not able to see and consult on the last couple of chapters. This piece greatly helped me develop my skills in writing from a character’s point of view. I will always be greatly appreciative of his input and coaching. At the end of this parable I included what I called a Portal to Discovery. It is meant to be a resource guide to help others research of Ego and Humility.

So given the discussions on ego and humility, I attach it here for you today dear friends as some of these amazing books might also inspire you and offer new insights and ideas. Please forgive the formatting as I translated PDF’s into JPGs.

Namaste