An Illusion of Consciousness...

A human being is a part of a whole that we call the universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separated from the rest – a kind of optical illusion of his consciousness.  This illusion is a prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for only a few people nearest to us.  Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living beings and all of nature.

        -Albert Einstein

The irony here is that our small children are not born trapped in any “prison”.  It is our very system of education, the way we raise our own precious children, that actually teaches separation.  We unknowingly fill our children with notions that divide, not unite.  We enter this world pure, feeling one with everything.  Yet as we grow, as we learn, we slowly build borders.  Perhaps we have it backwards.  Perhaps it is not in the information, the knowledge, the technology we so cherish that the most precious heart of humanity lies.  Perhaps the magic, the essence, the power of humanity exists in our “circle of compassion”, in the oneness we are born with.  Perhaps our system of education, our raising of our children, should be first and foremost seeking to protect that essential “oneness”. 

The gift of being a teacher is the chance to protect and celebrate that truth that all these magical young children who enter my classroom are born with - the truth that we are all free and all connected.  While we have adventures, while we play, while we sing songs, paint pictures, and face the many challenges of growing up, the one thing I hope we never build is prisons…

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