• WriterDad,

    I forget now what Psych class I had to write a paper on gifted kids but the point of it was that I don't really believe in the concept as an isolated group set apart from others..

    ( and *technically* I have/am raising some of them)

    What I mean by that is this. Where someone has a strength, you can look around and you will find they have a deficit somewhere, be it social, academic, artistic, mechanical...and conversly, where there is a deficit look around...cause I will bet you, that person will SHINE in something else.
    I think we can all do out best to look for the shining light in everyone...its there.
    We are all *gifted* at something. people just need to take the time to look for it insteed of only celebrating the academicly gifted ones.

    <abbr>Wendi Kelly-Life's Little Inspirationss last blog post..High Flying Faith</abbr>
  • Hey Writer Dad

    I'll be curious how Lucas makes his way through the million different rules and million different lessons.

    I'm a fan of helping underdogs and lifting others up.

    <abbr>J.D. Meiers last blog post..How To Develop Your Intuition</abbr>
  • Writer Dad
    Kyddryn: It is super hard to keep up with eleventy million blogs. I have exactly the same problem. I think my blood is fifteen percent caffeine.

    Tony: Thanks Tony. I appreciate it.

    Laurie: It is flattering that you read it more than once. I really appreciate it.

    Sal: I love the idea of paying it forward.

    Daisy: I never had a teacher has awesome as you. I'm glad you're mine forever.

    Chase: Thanks for the feedback. I'll try harder to tune his voice in the future. I have several with him written, but I'll keep his voice in mind next time I start fresh.

    Vered: Nope. It's all about the hard work.

    Marelisa: As always, very well said, Mare. You met Lucas once before, I even remember your comment. It was the day I was talking about Monkeechy, the imaginary flying monkey.

    Linda: Thank you on Lucas's behalf.

    Lance: Lucas said he's really excited to come back soon.

    B. Wilde: I love both, but would have to say I love words even more than image (even though we have to use at least a thousand to equal one of the other guys).

    Laurie: Even, but different, and we're all in it together.
  • Laurie
    Lucas, I am a teacher and had to give state tests that the state says everyone has to pass. While you would have no problem passing them, other students who are not as smart didn't pass. These kids are gifted in other areas that the state doesn't test so it is very difficult to see these kids see themselves as a failure. I am so glad you see that everyone has different gifts to be valued and being smart is yours.
  • You have captured so much in this post about your son. He will cheerish this one day and thank you for using your talent to describe him and his world at age ten. It reminds me of a photo, yet I think writing to and about our kids means so much more. Rather than just capture an image with memories, words given to another are so much more apart of us. This was touching.

    <abbr>B. Wildes last blog post..Parenting Advice - Beware of Halloween Treats</abbr>
  • Writer Dad - thanks for the introduction to Lucas, he is a a very good writer, and fitting words for your site here.

    Lucas - use your talents you've been given! Let them shine - always! We all have talents, gifts per se, that we can share with the world. Yours are yours and mine are mine. And they're probably not the same. And that's good - that makes us different and special just the same. Be you, always, Lucas...

    <abbr>Lances last blog post..Fear: Does It Hold You Back?</abbr>
  • Hi Lucas,

    I hope you grow up to be a teacher like WD & Daisy so you can share your ideas with many, many students. I also hope you become a parent like them so you can instill these values in your own children & grandchildren.

    Your poetry is lovely.
  • Hi Writer Dad: I don't think everyone's equal, I just think you can't tell who the really special people are based on sex, color, ethnic group, and so on. There are people who face seemingly insurmountable odds and yet persevere, while there are others who give up at the first sign of trouble. There are people who have everything handed to them and yet are miserable all the time, while there are others to whom life has dealt every bad hand imaginable, and yet they manage to see the good in everything around them.

    I had never "met" Lucas before, but I hope you bring him back :-)

    <abbr>Marelisas last blog post..The Secret of Unbridled Creativity</abbr>
  • "Life’s colors aren’t that black and white, they’re really rich and vivid. "
    This was my favorite part.

    Also wanted to say that being gifted is great, but - just like other gifts such a great beauty or a special talent - does not guarantee success in life or even happiness so no need to get overly excited about it.

    <abbr>Vered - MomGrinds last blog post..I Love San Francisco. Do You Like Where YOU Live?</abbr>
  • Hi Sean,

    I clicked on the link and realized that he was a character. I reread the peice after that and I still had a hard time believing in this character. I just wanted to give you some honest feedback. He just doesn't seem "real" to me.

    <abbr>Chase Marchs last blog post..Should Santa Come to Dad's?</abbr>
  • Writer Dad, I know Lucas Bright and I have taught many Lucas Bright's in 20 years. Sometimes he was referred to as, "Oh you teach that kid?"
    ( so touching how people refer to our innocent and hold such high positions in our society). Lucas comes in all colors, shapes and sizes. He lives in all of us if we choose to exercise our muscles...all of them. Do you see the young lady or the old lady in the picture? I just see inspiration and pure genius. Work your mind! Write on WD! I promise I won't plaster a Lucas quote on a stop sign.

    <abbr>Daisys last blog post..Don’t Rain On My Parade</abbr>
  • Sal
    Very nice indeed. It remindes me of the rule of 3. If each person did something to help out 3 other people, then those people helped out another 3, etc. Imagine what a difference that would make.

    <abbr>Sals last blog post..An Epidemic of Child-like Proportions</abbr>
  • This is great WD - I've read it a few times and it gets better and better. There are two quotes in particular I'm going to be putting up beside my computer:

    "It’s like when those who have large muscles help out those a little weak, or when those who have loud voices speak for those who cannot speak."

    "If the world is filled by those who can, and those who can’t as well, then those who can should KNOW they can, then HELP OTHERS to excel."

    I really appreciate the idea of caring by sharing and helping others by giving what you've already got. Good stuff! Thanks.

    <abbr>Laurie | Express Yourself to Successs last blog post..It’s Better to Give than to Receive</abbr>
  • wow - that was really good. I can see why you have such a following.

    <abbr>Tonys last blog post..The Dance of Gypsies and Paupers</abbr>
  • Sleep? What is this "sleep" of which you speak?

    I have bouts of insomnia. The Internet is open twenty-four/seven. SO I cruise and comment and make a nuisance of my sleep deprived, Typo speaking self. Lucky, lucky Internet.

    Even when I'm not insomniac, I'm too busy trying to write, teach the Evil Genius, cook, avoid housework, and read the eleventy-million blogs I want to keep up with to sleep.

    Coffee, coffee, coffee, coffee, la, la, la, la, la....

    Shade and Sweetwater,
    K (who'd be nutsy-cuckoo even if she DID sleep)

    <abbr>Kyddryns last blog post..Four Meme</abbr>
  • Writer Dad
    Beth: Sorry. I never finished my thought. I started a response, got distracted, then came back a half hour later with a wandering mind. My final point was to say that we as a people just elected a President who did say he was special and knew it from inside, and they weren't the type of feelings that he should have to hide. He is promising to help out those a little weak, and give voice to those who cannot speak. It's not bragging, it's leadership.

    Jamie: This poem is now about six months old. Every time I read it, I find something new that strikes me. Last night, it was this: "I can help all those who need it. Others can help me. Like the waist and foot together are reliant on the knee." We're all walking the world together, and we should never forget it.

    Jen: Thanks. I'm glad it made you think. I think we will see Lucas again soon.
  • Jen
    That's lovely and thought provoking. Always nice to read a post that gets the brain wheels turning. And it's a bit timely to I think. Nice job.

    <abbr>Jens last blog post..bloggish love</abbr>
  • Wonderful rhymes today, Sean.
    "If NONE of us are stronger, then how can we give assistance, to those of us who life’s seen fit to offer some resistance?"

    I love that one. :)

    <abbr>Jamie Simmermans last blog post..Here’s Your Compliment, NOW TAKE IT!</abbr>
  • Writer Dad
    Ian: Well said, and cheerio. I decided last night that Lucas should be a semi-regular contributor to Writer Dad. I've totally stopped writing him because he doesn't have an outlet, but I think it's time to give him a voice. Great points. Both times.

    Beth: That is an excellent point, Beth, but I would say this. There is a thin line between bragging and swagger. We should never brag, because such is a vacuous action. However, if we look through the leaders in history who took us from valley to summit, they have been those who have been willing to stand on the mountain top. Martin Luther King, JFK, on and on, these are individuals who shouted it loud and told the world what made them stand out in a crowd - there ideas. The following lines are pivotal to the message. "But there’s a cost to all the crowing, a piper they must pay. When they get that they are gifted, they should build a brighter day. It’s like when those who have large muscles help out those a little weak, or when those who have loud voices speak for those who cannot speak." When you can do better, you MUST do better, and bring others with you.

    Aylad: Exceedingly well stated. We must weave ourselves together to fabricated the most beauty.
  • Ian
    Aylad MacOdys: Exactly. Life is not fair. It never will be. It also isn't meant to be a solitary act. Life is meant to be lived along with others. As you pointed out, the talents that we each have compliment one another so that this unfair life can go along a little more fairly for us.
  • "Nothing is more unequal than equal treatment of unequal people." This quote is often attributed to Thomas Jefferson, although I have my doubts. It is, however, true.

    My students frequently cry that something is "unfair" if one student gets a benefit... or a drawback... that another student doesn't. It's true. Life is unfair. It's unfair that we can't all sing beautifully, paint beautiful landscapes, create amazing sculptures, or write as well as WriterDad... or see, or hear, or run... but the combination of talents of different people produces something so beautiful that only God could have come up with the idea for it. Maybe "unfairness" isn't so bad, after all.
  • Writer Dad, I like the runaway rhymes here, but I do have a question about this line:

    "Why don’t we let them celebrate? Let’s hear ‘em shout it loud. Let them tell the world what makes them stand out in a crowd."

    What about those of us who were taught that is bragging?

    <abbr>Beth Partins last blog post..Fridays at Restoration Nation: Invisible Hand</abbr>
  • Ian
    There's such a challenge to the notion of equality. When we, as a culture, try to enable equality, we too often end up breaking it in some way. Offering grants and scholarships with limitations on race or gender is an attempt to give equality to minorities, but it then shuts out the majority.

    I realize there are no perfect solutions, except perhaps to let everyone have the same chances and to stop trying to game the system in favor of one person or another. Unnecessary complexity creates the problem. Often, the simplest answer is the solution.

    Nice poem, Lucas (WD ;). I hope to hear more of your thoughts in the future. You are erudite and possess a profundity beyond your years.

    <abbr>Ians last blog post..I Want To Do It With You</abbr>
  • Writer Dad
    Kyddryn: "because we can be unique and equal, individual and yet a part of the great humanity." You said that a lot more concisely than I did. I also love the skin cell/blood cell analogy. Very apt indeed. On a wholly unrelated note, when do you sleep?

    Miguel: My pleasure, Miguel. Apologies for my lousy español. I'm getting better. I'll be over later. I'm not sure what philospernotes is, but I trust that it's cool.

    Leanne: Each and every word. He's also been mining my hard drive for future posts.

    Chase: I apologize for the confusion. I placed a note at the end of the post. Lucas is a character, nothing more. I've written several like the one above. That one is not the first one written, but it is him explaining himself a bit. He is full of himself, but not self-centered at all. The entire point of the piece is that those who are capable need to use their ability to help others around them.

    Eric: Kids, most often, do not know the adage about walking softly and carrying a big stick. A ten year old is more about bravado, which is precisely why it is fun to write with his voice.

    Mike: Lucas and I both thank you, Mike. I am glad the message was clear.
  • OOOOhhhh. Writer Dad/Luca, Luca/Writer Dad. I completely missed that. Great character as well! Eric.

    <abbr>Eric Hamms last blog post..The Color Of Passion | Community Insight</abbr>
  • I certainly could not have written something like that when I was 10 years old. Of course, I can't do write quite that eloquently now -- and generally, I have to concentrate hard to read poetry. This was crystal clear for me -- and resonated. I didn't even realize it was poetry until I read it in a comment.

    Great job!

    <abbr>Mike Goads last blog post..Eyes of the Great Depression 004</abbr>
  • This is certainly a solid poem. I agree that is sounds like it is coming from an older mind, but assume that's just because, as is stated, he is a smart kid.

    So Lucas, great writing here! You did a good job.

    Just keep in mind that when you're gifted, you don't have to shout it from the rooftops. The cool thing about knowing your smart is the fact that YOU know you're smart. That's all that matters. Your actions, accomplishments and insights will all attest to this fact as time goes on. So keep being smart; just know that humility is another great attribute that compliments intelligence wonderfully.

    Great poem, none the less! :-) Eric.

    <abbr>Eric Hamms last blog post..Official ‘Sign In’ Post…</abbr>
  • Hi Sean,

    I don't believe that Lucas is an elementary student. Is he gifted? I mean he hints as much in that reading but it just doesn't ring true to what a Grade 7 student might say, at least it doesn't for me.

    Perhaps I'm being too judgmental here. He does seem self-centred and all about himself. It's like he has to prove that he is special. Maybe that is exactly what a kid would say. It just sounds too well composed for a kid.

    <abbr>Chase Marchs last blog post..Should Santa Come to Dad's?</abbr>
  • Wee Lucas is very smart. Did he "borrow" some of the clever things he said from a wee book?

    <abbr>Leanne Magraith | Forever Changes last blog post..Chocolate, Pizza, Ice Cream, Wine and the Comfort Zone</abbr>
  • Hey WD,

    Thanks for the link love. Just one wee little thing really, it's eldiEtario. Dietario, incidentally, means planner in Spanish.

    As for the main post, I agree, equality means to give everybody a fair chance to succeed.

    (Btw, I'm giving away free subscriptions for philosopersnotes.com at my blog and I still have some left so...)

    <abbr>Miguel de Luiss last blog post..Oliver Twist lives (2): Who will buy this wonderful morning?</abbr>
  • I never thought equality meant we were all the same...more that being equal, we all have the same opportunity to shine, the same opportunity to maximize our strengths and use them to bolster where others may be weak, and to allow others to bolster our weaknesses. We are all equally welcome to celebrate that which makes us uniquely us - because we can be unique and equal, individual and yet a part of the great humanity.

    A skin cell is not a blood cell, but both are equally important to the body, and each helps the other function as it should.

    Cool poem. :-)

    Shade and Sweetwater,
    K

    <abbr>Kyddryns last blog post..Because I Can</abbr>
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