Rachel Allison
Reading Ann Bailey’s article about the studies that have come out against the Federal Government’s Head Start preschool program must be discouraging to those whose intentions may have been positive and even altruistic. But the years of time and effort and billions of dollars poured into the program have proven a failure.
Who lost out? The innocent children who were used as Guiney pigs to boost the ego of brainstorming government employees who thought that they had devised a program that was better than a mother’s love and the security of home environment. What does a child need and long for more than anything else in the world? Quantity and quality time spent with their mother.
Who else lost out? The mothers who forfeited memories made with their precious pre-schoolers.
You may say, “But it was a program for poor families.” I remember the families in my hometown who sent their children to Head Start. The mothers loved their children. They may have qualified for government assistance, but they were good mothers. They mistakenly thought they were giving their children an advantage, when in reality they were giving up precious time and memories with their child for a program that failed. Again, what does a child need and long for more than anything else in the world? Quantity and quality time spent with their mother.
Can you sense my emotion? For the past two weeks I have been following through on a New Year’s Resolution. I have spent hours compiling a memory album of my children. Each photo represents a precious memory I have with them. Each hour spent on the project has stirred emotions that have brought me close to tears. If I could I would go back in time and do it all again.
Young mothers and fathers…May I emphasize that no one will love and care for your children as well as you. Love them. Teach them. Spend as much time with them as you possibly can. Enjoy them, and allow them to enjoy you. Your memories will create a valuable anchor to your soul that you will cherish more and more as the years advance. Trust me on this one. I think it may even be a natural law.