Through a river of tears and a pouty mouth, Alexis managed to squeak out why she was having a nervous breakdown. "I'm not good at the computer," she said.
It had (finally) come to her attention that she's behind her peers in all things computer-related.
It's by design, really. Her design. She has never shown much interest in anything that has to do with computers. She has never asked for a DS, doesn't play our Wii, and couldn't care less about things Mickey's website or Webkinz or any of that sort of thing. She has always preferred coloring, writing, reading, and pretend play to anything electronic.
I explained as much to her, slowly talking her down from the ledge. By the time we were done chatting, she seemed to understand that different kids pick different things to learn first and that it was OK that she had chosen to be good at reading over being good at navigating the mouse on a computer.
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We owe the world a forest by now. Possibly two. Alexis spends most of her evenings coloring and drawing and writing and cutting, plowing through reams of paper as if they are oxygen. The evidence is everywhere. EVERYWHERE. Little scraps of paper litter the family room floor. The fridge is wallpapered with Alexis art. Crayons are burned off like wood in a fireplace. She goes through them so quickly that I buy them five packs at a time.
Alexis just plain loves to create art.
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As I sat in the parent orientation for kindergarten (yes, KINDERGARTEN!), I reviewed the bulleted list of signs that a child is ready for The Big Time. One item after another got a mental checkmark as I realized that Alexis is way more than ready to take on school for real. She might even wind up being a little bit bored academically.
And then it struck me--nowhere on the list was there anything related to computer use. The focus for kindergarten readiness was related to social skills and speech issues--alphabet recognition, sounds, some reading and writing, etc.
"Interesting," I thought.
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As the orientation continued, I began to fidget. There was once a time when I could make it through a one-hour meeting paying full attention, but that time is most definitely not now. Between doodling on the handouts and staring at the posters on the wall, my mind was everywhere that it didn't belong. As the school nurse continued providing information, I began digging through my jacket pocket.
And found this:
A tiny little Alexis heart.
She most definitely picked right when Alexis decided to work on reading, writing, and art early on.
