I have always though “what could you possibly learn from someone whose sole existence relies on someone else?” Infants obviously cannot bath, clothe, or feed themselves. They are completely innocent, relying on their parents for all care. When I was little all I thought that infants and babies could teach me was how to get what I wanted. If a baby starts to cry they are immediately tended to. This could include feeding, attention, and to my little cousin McKayla “moneys.”
Growing up children always hear “don’t be a crybaby.” This implies that by crying about your own wants and needs signifies that an individual cannot provide for themselves. Although some parents and adults give in to their children there are still others who believe that this will hurt the child’s future. Little girls have a higher probability of getting their way than baby boys.
What I have really learned from babies and infants is responsibility. I first started babysitting when I was 10 years old. My best friend’s mother had a baby that year and began to pay us to watch him for extra money for clothes and games. The two of us always had worked small odd jobs to help our families, school, and church. These included chores, helping with concession stands, and cleaning the church as well as helping with youth groups.
I had previous experience with children. My mother is the youngest of 13 children. This results in me having numerous cousins of all ages with babies continuously present. However, the contact I had with these children were limited and in small amounts. My physical size resulted in the parents not allowing me to carry children. I would sit in a chair to hold the baby. As soon as the child would cry they would be out of my arms and I would run outside to play.
Our first time actually watching Ezra by ourselves we were only with him for a few hours. He could walk and “babble.” I had spent previous time with him and we had gotten along well. I could sometimes decipher what he was saying but I had never tried this while he was in a fit of tears. After an occurrence of this all my prior thoughts and feelings changed. It seemed as if Ezra would never stop crying. He cried when he was hungry, thirsty, or tired.
After my first time babysitting I never wanted to do it again. I even refused to go to my friend’s house for a while. When I did finally decide to babysit again I was more prepared. This next encounter was much more positive. I went into the situation with a plan. Crying would be a direct result of one of a few possibilities. These include hungry, tired, angry, lonely, or gassy. My plan started out simply. I would feed him and then we would play games and do activities outside until Ezra became so worn out from playing that he would sleep for the rest of the time I was babysitting.
This plan began to work effectively, however it also made me very tired because Ezra was content with playing hard outside in the sun. We played a variety of different sports all of which somehow involved me chasing after him. This not only made him tired from running but I was as well. We both had to return indoors to have refreshments and then he settled down for a nap. I was so extremely tired that it was complicated for me to remain awake while waiting for his parents to return home. Ezra continued to teach me about responsibility the more I babysat him and I continued to learn other ways of distracting him and giving him time to play alone. By the time I reached high school we had a system that worked for both of us.
Ezra would help me clean up his toys around the house before we would begin playing any games. This made less work for me after he “crashed” from playing. I could then sit and do homework until his parents arrived. The responsibility I learned from Ezra has continued to help me throughout my life because it helps to establish a plan of action for every course I take.
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