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Look into the eyes of an newborn infant. Peaceful. Inquisitive. Trusting. Love. There is no hint of judgment or shame. There is no diverting of eyes prompted by discomfort of human connection. There is no understanding of life with laws. There is no concept of delayed gratification.

Infants operate from the truest part of humankind- the heart. And while she may become furious when hungry or wet, she is quick to forgive when changed and fed. She never worries from where her next meal will come. She never worries about her needs being met. And she absolutely never will lament over the trivialities of materialism. She compares herself to no one to gage her self worth. She loves herself completely. This is innocence in its purest form.

Long about six months old, she may learn, from well meaning parents, that her cries mean nothing when she wakes in the night; they are teaching her to "put herself to sleep," as advised by the pediatrician. Thus, the concept of despair enters the picture. And by and by, she will learn conformity; she will doze off more quickly the second and third time around. In this seemingly harmless parental act, this infant's view of herself changes. She is no longer the center of the Universe. She begins to accommodate the rules of adults, and, in such a helpless age, will never think twice that sh
e abandoned her pure-and-perfect self-perception.
That same infant will grow to be a toddler. She must learn to conform her exuberant and effortless propensity for discovery. She hears, "No!" more than "Yes!" and will continue to learn that "following her bliss" is unacceptable. Again, well meaning parents that are teaching their child, in efforts to raise her to a competent adult.

A few years later, this lovely child timidly shuffles into her first day of kindergarten. Her inquisitive eyes peer around the room full of wondrous things- just waiting to be revealed. She is practiced at keeping her "world discovery" urges in check. She reluctantly takes her place amongst her classmates.

When she is finally free to discover the classroom environment, she learns that she must do this in a limited time. She is forced to replace unfinished puzzles. She learns that some things are "off-limits." She is forced to wait her turn for the toy of her choice, only to discover that free-time is over and she must return to her seat.

She eats her snack when she is told, naps when she is told, goes out on the playground when she is told, and, most notably, learns about

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