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Give illustrations of ways in which specific styles of foolishness were learned in your early years.
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Naive Foolishness: I was the center of attention, and if I wasn’t, I demanded it and it came. I knew i was cute because of the attention coming my way, but I invariably learned I was in control.
Learned Foolishness: This is where i learned how to direct attention my way in a controlled setting. You see I had to control the setting to receive the attention I desired in a large family. Sometimes it was good attention, sometimes it was bad attention. But it was the attention directed at me that I desired.
Practiced Foolishness: At this time as I started school, and had experiences I couldn’t control, I learned that I wasn’t the center of my universe. I learned that others had the same need as I did, but now my selfishness really kicked in causing me to push back in demanding and demeaning ways. I wasn’t;t the star, but I could still be the center of my world.
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Dr. Crabb’s model of a child’s growth is an interesting alternative to Piaget’s and Erickson’s models. If naïve foolishness is the first year of life, I would be lying if I say I remember (unless if it can be unearthed from the subconscious by questionable techniques like hypnosis?). If learned foolishness is from ages two to five before going to school, neither can I remember too concretely. Dimly I remember I regarded it important to have a happy relationship with my mother who was the one mostly with me in the day. If practiced foolishness from ages six to twelve is trying out what patterns of living and socializing work, I was still ignorant about what works, because I was then tied to my mother’s apron-strings and unable to work out what worked with my friends.
#SoulCare
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Naive Foolishness: I have absolutely no memories of my years from 0-1 yrs old. I only saw one picture of my Mom holding me on her lap as she sat outside on the grass on the land my Dad and Step-Grandfather were building our home-to-be. I was actually crying. I have no idea why.
Learned Foolishness: The only memory I have of my life between the ages of two and five, is that my paternal grandmother took me to Sunday School with her and although I had one older brother and a younger brother and sister (the younger two were just learning to walk), I was the only person who went with her and even in later years, no one except me wanted to go. My paternal grandmother spent more time with me, one on one, than my parents or siblings.
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Be the “good, responsible “ child and your parents will praise you to others.
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I learned and practiced being both the center of attention and one who ran from that attention in unhealthy ways – my perfect storm at home fostered confusion in me re the success of my father who was a a quiet servant leader in our small town and a father who did not give me much attention – I wasn’t sure where I fit in and I compared myself too much to the other children in many ways so that I would not stand out too much