Well, so, we set up an aquarium in Blue's room. During the "cycling" period when all the nitrates, phosphates, lactates, concubites, and Hittites were changing places in the population rankings; 8of 9 goldfish perished. The survivor has become a favorite creature of my better 3/4's and she has refused to allow me to return this hardy individual to the fish store. (They let you bring fish back to trade them in for more fashionable fins.)Apparently, the goldfish were meant to prepare the water for the more socially-beloved fish. Anyway, we have this one left; and he's somewhat of a pig. Eating everything, plants included, and getting bigger by the mouthful.
As an 'aquarist,' one learns that his status as "keeper of the tank" isn't as God-like as it seemed from the start. When everybody dies, and the only thing you can do about it is run back to the fish store and do exactly what they tell you [read 'sell you']; well the truth has come home to roost, baby.
And in similar fashion, the conductor bursts into your life all smiles and with her own unique accent; and we learn again how much we have to learn. Thank goodness! My mental aquarium has lost a few fish to this point. I need someone to toss me a flake!
Then we [Anne & I] meet another 'CP parent' in Seattle the other day ago. She has only recently learned that there is a conductor lurking in her city; so we put them onto each other. Hate to say so, but it's no surprise to hear this parent tell me, "He's learned more from an hour and a half with the conductor than in all of his therapeutic life." How crazy, that a phrase like that is actually old hat. Maybe conductive education is like that last, tough goldfish who stood the test and still stands.
Just a reminder, conductive education is moving again in B.C. Check the link on my blog list for Moving Ahead Conductive Consulting. Zsipp-Zsupp!
"Conductive education: a revolution for families with children suffering
cerebral palsy" a view from 2008
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This is a translation from Russian, using Google Translate, of an article
link posted by Andrew Sutton on Facebook, for which there is not otherwise
an Eng...
2 years ago
3 comments:
Great image, an icon even.
I have 'borrowed' it':
http://www.conductive-world.info/2010/09/spaniard-in-works.html
Thanks, Andrew.
Lovely posting James.
You seem to have come to a decent adjustment for the moment but, relating your goldfish idea to other people, my own experience suggests a couple of points.
Conductors have to be careful who is in charge and who is changing the water. Sometimes employing institutions change, for the worst, which leads to contamination of the water. Perhaps it is better not to be too confined, by dipping feet into different pools. Being self –employed perhaps!
When I read your posting last night, though, I did think how being a conductor can be very much like being in a goldfish bowl. We are trying our best to get out into a bigger aquarium with other fish, not necessarily all goldfish. What is even harder to do is trying to swim with the stream in the current of life, and not against it, or against glass boundaries all the time.
If we remain in that glass bowl there are always people peering in, “ooohing” and “aaahing” like they do with beautiful fish, liking what they see, but we always have the fear that the cat will come and swipe us out, or knock the whole bowl over, with the water spreading out in a thin film and with the fish disappearing under the furniture.
If this happens, two or more goldfish in a bowl might have a better chance of keeping CE surviving, but remaining in the same bowl going round and round looking out through the glass indefinitely, eventually one or even all fish will give up the ghost.
One fish in a bowl is not the answer either. It is however a good start, but we have to get out there and go with the flow and not always against it. We have to test the fresh flowing waters and learn how to survive in them.
We fish need to swim with in shoals, we need like minds, as Anne says. We do not need huge shoals, just a few will do.
Do you know that song about the little fishes. Those who swam and they swam right over that dam? We will get there too, somehow.
Susie
James and Susie,
How thought-provoking. I have responded (or free-associated!) at:
http://www.conductive-world.info/2010/09/families-and-conductors-getting-it.html
Thanks,
Andrew.
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