8. We're All Animals - human brain development

Maria Montessori coined the idea of the Developmental Planes for children. It goes as follows:

Infancy is 0-6 years

Focus on physical independence with an egocentric mindset.

Childhood is 6-12 years

Focus on mental independence and establishing local community (friends and family).

Adolescence is 12-18 years

Focus on social independence and forming a broader community.

Maturity is 18-24 years

Focus on emotional independence and morality or spirituality.

Another pair of great minds likened early development of physical state and intelligence to that of animals. Julio DeQuiros and Orlando Schrager studied the link between muscle tone and intelligence finding newborn infants comparable to turtles or crocodiles, crawling infants to dogs or horses, then upright children superior to all other animals.

I know you're familiar with the 'why' phase of toddlerhood.

Humans are the only species on earth capable of asking why. We uniquely plan for our futures or reminisce about our pasts.

Human beings spend a lot more time developing outside of the womb than any other mammal too. Why is that? Because we are social and spiritual creatures. We need connection to develop to our fullest potential.

We are not fully developed until well into our 20's. That's a very long developmental timeline where a lot could go wrong.

Although every day of our life has the potential to make an impact, it is the formative years that are the most complicated to heal from. When we become parents we often find ourselves ill equipped to manage a household because we have suppressed so much of our own early development.

When something traumatic derails your development the train does not right itself. Our mental and spiritual development halts until our mind and body are repaired.

Recognizing our own inadequacies is easy.

Our children are mirrors of our own developmental challenges. When we see something in them, we can trace it back to a problem within ourselves that needs solving. Next time you are confronted with something your child does which makes you uncomfortable,

then ask yourself why. And don't look to them for the solution, since you only truly can control yourself we must start our journey towards peaceful parenting from within.

God does not give us children to make them obey us like dogs. God gives us children who reveal our flaws and insecurities so that when we pray for guidance, we may see how truly glorious our infallible creator is.

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