Fly, Nannie Bird, Fly!

P1010416 P1010418 P1010419 P1010422 There is nothing quite like having your very own cheerleader. Mine is all of 2 and she’s a star at it.

On her last visit, we played ‘making nests’ in pillows and blankets to hide from an imaginary storm. Inevitably she asks for a story, so I told her the one about Goldilocks and the Three Bears. Her expression was magic when we got to the part where baby bear found that little golden haired culprit sleeping in his bed.

The story wrapped up, the storm cleared and it was time to leave the nest. She jumped up, flapped her wings, clearly wanting me to follow her lead, and called out, “Fly, Nannie Bird, fly!” So I flapped for all I was worth and flew. What else could I do?

If that seems impossible, let me ask you this. What have you done, at the inspiration and encouragement of another, that you thought utterly impossible? My little cheerleader swung from a metal pole in a small rubber basket with holes in it far above the gravelly ground. She dragged and tossed driftwood, twice her height, into a stormy sea. She conversed as an equal with someone 50 years her senior. She built a train track and navigated a long, round surface from one narrow end to the other. I knew she could.

There is power in words well-placed. They can and do move us from the realm of the impossible into the realm of possibility. And that’s why it’s so important to have cheerleaders close by. They see our potential and the power we have to get it done. They know very well that we are punching above our weight class but it doesn’t matter because their’s is a perspective that is one step ahead.

I wonder if for some of us it’s easier to think in terms of obstacles. They are lumps that sit right in front of you. All you have to do is open your eyes and there they are, looming and limiting. No imagination required. It takes something extra to see beyond what can be seen. It’s what leaders mean when they talk about vision; things not as they are now but things as they could be. Every organization needs vision or it gets stuck maintaining the status quo, never trying anything new. Yes, the risk of failure is a factor, the ‘squandering’ of resources may enter in, people may be displeased. Are those reasons not to try?P1010423

During that recent flight as Nannie Bird, my cheerleader found a tiny cave, between the bed and the wall, where little me couldn’t quite fit. “Try, Nannie Bird, try!” she said and I did and although it was squishy, I managed. The pretend hot chocolate from the pretend bakery was delicious and had I not tried, I most certainly would have missed out.

“God can do anything you know – far more than you could ever imagine or guess or request in your wildest dreams! He does it not by pushing us around but by working within us, his Spirit deeply and gently within us.” Ephesians 3:20

…all the while teaching us to fly!

About sandi

Sandi makes her home on Vancouver Island.
This entry was posted in Creativity, Faith, Family, Grandparenting, Imagination, Musings, Play. Bookmark the permalink.

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