“One pure moment holds the power to create infinite love” ~Angie Welland-Crosby
A week ago, Allegro staff gathered to spend some quality time together and reflect on the Allegro Culture/Community we are building. We took time to learn more about ourselves, each other and dream of the world we want to live in.
Our take aways:
MENTAL HEALTH Having mental wellness is not just the absence of mental illness. It’s how we cope with the ups and downs of every day life, how we see ourselves and out future, how we manage stress, our self-esteem and confidence; it effects how we think, feel and behave. Having poor mental health can impact brain development, it increases cortisol leading people to be at risk of disease (physical and mental).
PERSONALITY TYPES We all have different temperaments that shape how we react to the same situation. Barefoot Facilitation helped us learn our personality dimensions, understanding how our personalities may shape our values, our strengths and provide some challenges. We learned that are our personalities are a blend of many ( think plaid). Being able to understand ourselves and others, allows us to understand other perspectives and develop empathy or change our communication styles.
EMOTIONAL TEMPLATE Wouldn’t it be wonderful if we all had the emotional intelligence and regulation skills to cope with with any emotion we have? The reality is, that some emotions are hard. Our lived experiences have left us feeling alone or shame with certain emotions, we’ve had to keep that emotion in and try to ignore it; as a result we struggle supporting others in this emotion. This is our emotional template. To support others in an emotion that is challenging us, we need to learn how to regulate ourselves, empathize with them and support them in their feeling.
RELATIONSHIP IS OUR BEST TOOL All learning happens through relationship. When we take time to build healthy attachments, children feel safe and secure to express themselves, to explore the world they live in and know that they have the support of a trusted adult with them. We explored the Circle of Security and Handle with Care as tools in supporting healthy attachments and social and emotional development.
GOOD ENOUGH There is no such thing as a perfect caregiver but we should strive to be the GOOD ENOUGH caregiver. The “good enough” care giver shows up and tries to connect; we may not get it right the first time ( in fact the research shows that we’re going to get it wrong 70% of the time) but how we show up with the child is what makes the difference. Research shows that true attachment in formed when we connect during the “getting it wrong” period.
“IF YOU DON’T KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING ANYWHERE WILL DO” We were inspired by Lorrie Baird and Ann Marie Coughlin, who reminded us the value of reflective practice and creating conditions to support the world we want to live in. Allegro is in agreement that we are going to show up committed, excited and curious; we are going to question certainties and be willing to be uncomfortable because we know that change can be uncomfortable.
Together we stand for:
Connection and relationships
Support
Environments and relationships that promote belonging, safety and security
To be available to create a secure bond and environment
A safe, playful environment and an opportunity to take safe risks.
Delight in each child
Acceptance
Choices
Being With*
*a concept from Circle of Security
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