Johann Arnold Christoph - Their Name Is Today: Reclaiming Childhood in a Hostile World

Their Name Is Today

Reclaiming Childhood
in a Hostile World

Johann Christoph Arnold

Foreword by Mark K. Shriver

Plough Publishing House

Foreword

I bet this is the shortest foreword you will ever read!

Why?

Because I do not want to delay you more than a minute or two from reading my good friend Johann Christoph Arnolds book.

It really is that good.

Like Christoph, I have had the honor of working with children of all ages throughout my career. During college summer breaks I tutored troubled inner-city high school students. After college, I created a program that works with juvenile delinquents in Baltimore. In the Maryland Legislature, as the first chair of the Joint Committee on Children, Youth and Families, I collaborated with national and international experts on child development and passed legislation designed to help young children enter kindergarten ready to learn. For the last twelve years, I have had the privilege of working at Save the Children, giving kids in the United States and around the world a healthy start, opportunities to learn, and protection from harm, because children deserve a childhood.

On the home front, my wife, Jeanne, and I have been married for twenty-two years and have been blessed with three children: Molly, 16, Tommy, 14, and Emma, 9.

Like you, we have struggled with many of the issues that Christoph addresses in this marvelous book, from the impact of electronics, to academic pressures, to the lack of unstructured play time, to the violence and poverty that children face daily.

Jeanne and I often find ourselves discussing how to deal with these very issues as we raise our own children. Things are coming at us so fast and furiously, its overwhelming. We have tried to do the right thing, making numerous changes as our kids grow.

I only wish that Christoph had written this book seventeen years ago, before Jeanne and I became parents! He could have helped us on the child-rearing front, in the political arena, and on the job.

The stories Christoph shares have helped Jeanne and me as we interact with our children and their friends, and I am confident that they will help you in your home, in your classroom, and in your neighborhood.

If you want to glean insights into how to raise and influence children to be more compassionate and considerate, more courageous and confident, more independent, secure, and unselfish; if you want your children to be more loving and joy-filled, then get reading!

And share this book. Ive already shared my dog-eared manuscript with several friends. They responded as I did. One replied: It makes me want to go back and do a few things differently for my own children....

I have written too much. Read on and learn from a wise friend who loves and reveres children, whose words can help us all, whatever our age, to give and receive joy.

Mark K. Shriver
President, Save the Children Action Network
Author, A Good Man: Rediscovering My Father, Sargent Shriver

Preface

Its high time for a hopeful book about childhood. We live in difficult times and many people have lost their joy in life. But whenever we feel discouraged, all we need to do is look at children. They are among the most vulnerable in todays fast-paced culture, yet their trust in us and their irrepressible enthusiasm should always inspire us to keep going.

There are more than enough books about education and parenting books with gloomy statistics and dire warnings for the future of our society and its children.

Yet there are many reasons for hope. Across America and around the world, there are people who care passionately about children. But they often feel overwhelmed, fighting lonely battles for what they know to be right and true. In this book, I want to bring their voices together so their valuable insights and courageous examples can be shared.

This book is dedicated first and foremost to all children, wherever they live. It is also dedicated to the parents and teachers who care for them day and night. To me, these people are the true heroes, on the front lines every day, facing difficult odds.

We all need to become advocates for children, parents, and teachers, encouraging them whenever we can, and finding ways to make their lives a little easier.

A book cant change the world. But parents and teachers can by loving each child entrusted to them. Thats why this book is in your hands. I hope it will encourage and invigorate you to hear from others who have children of their own or work with them every day, and who share your passion and commitment.

The wisdom collected in these pages is rooted in the realities of daily life. Thats what gives me hope. Because no matter how dark the horizon seems, we must never forget that for us, as for children, the chance for a new beginning starts every morning.

Johann Christoph Arnold

Rifton, New York

Chapter 1

The World Needs Children

If we do not keep on speaking terms with children, we become merely machines for eating and earning money.

John Updike

The cry of a newborn baby catches at the heart. It says, Love me. Help me. Protect me. As adults, we consider ourselves the helpers and protectors. But the more I think about it, the more Im convinced that we need children more than they need us.

Experts inform us that overpopulation is destroying the earth. I disagree: greed and selfishness are ruining the planet, not children. They are born givers, not takers. They are also born teachers, if we are wise enough to hear the truths they bring. In the midst of our complex adult lives, we must make time to take in the lessons that only children can teach.

Children demand honesty and simplicity. They expect words to line up with deeds. Though children can quickly get angry, they forgive just as fast, giving others the great gift of a second chance. They have a strong sense of justice and fair play. They look at everything with new eyes, and point out to us the incredible beauty of the world around us.

Imagine what would happen if we applied these values to our government, foreign policy, corporate business models, environmental decisions, and educational theory.

A society that doesnt welcome children is doomed. Yet the odds dont appear to be stacked in favor of children or their caregivers, whether parents or teachers. As the gap between rich and poor steadily widens, more and more families can hardly afford basics like housing and insurance. In many cities, desperate family conditions have necessitated the rise of twenty-four-hour childcare. Parents who work long hours have no choice but to yield their children to caregivers who must take over many traditional parenting tasks such as dressing the children, providing breakfast, caring for them through sickness, and tucking them in at night.

Meanwhile, new and untested political mandates that threaten childrens originality and abilities are handed down to teachers and students. Voices of opposition rarely reach the ears of those who drive these decisions.

Beverly Braxton, a retired teacher and administrator, has worked on behalf of children for decades. She sums up our current dilemma:

I ask people in my community what concerns them most about children growing up in todays world. Most people list similar concerns: the amount of time spent on media and technology, childrens exposure to sexual content and violence, lack of family time and eating on the run, the stress related to academic excellence, and children becoming less interested in spending time exploring the outdoors. Yet, when asked if they have any ideas regarding how these issues might be addressed, everyone I speak to seems to shrug their shoulders in exasperation.