Monday, October 18, 2010

Clarity of purpose and ukuleles

Do some decisions come easily to you?  Do you see the world in black and white?  I've often said that I tend to see the world in shades of grey.  Maybe that's because I'm a middle child.  I don't know. 

We often talk about how our kids interpret the world so literally and how that often translates into a clarity of purpose.  Granted, that can be a real hindrance at times when they need to be flexible but I think it can also serve them so well.  I'm jealous often of that singular purpose particularly when I'm faced with a tough decision like chosing my clothes in the morning.  This singular purpose has worked for war heroes, presidents, and CEO's.  I love it, though, when my son has such a clear vision of something.  That makes him CEO material in my book.

About 2 weeks back it was apparent what he wanted for his birthday.  We posed the question and without hesitation he answered "a ukulele".  My wife and I looked at each other grinning and shook our heads.  You gotta love it. 

Check out these clips.  Sorry in advance for the background noise.  It was an 8 year old's birthday party though so what can you expect...



As you can see from the video, he knew exactly what he wanted.  He was also interested and willing to share it with his friend Madi.  That's icing on the cake (birthday pun intended).

Let's see if his desire now translates into a budding musical talent.  I suspect it will.  Good thing he didn't want a tuba.