Lael Stone

What are the values that you would want to bring to that, whether it's your own children or just the kids that you work with?

Yeah, that's a good question.

I think that it's been amazing.

working with lots of young people and you know touching on what we said about school before I think because I all I needed at school was someone in my corner it's I've been so happy and so lucky to be able to work with young kids and be that person for them or at least attempt to you know I was working in the school for a while as like an LSO and that was so amazing because again I was kind of put with these kids that were known as the bad kids or the cheeky kids and really after a

half an hour talking to them I'm like oh my gosh this young boy is just hurting he's got some stuff going on for him at home and it feels really big and no one has given him the time of day to hear him out I think the default is to just act out no it's too hard I don't want to do it when really all it takes is someone to sit there and go no I hear you like I'm here to help you what can I do to make this easier for you um and I think that was that's been really amazing working with young people to show me that yeah there's always just stuff going on behind the scenes and really

I think young kids, it's such a big scary thing is your body's changing, your brain's changing, trying to keep up with all your other peers and there's so much going on.

And really at the end of the day, all you need is just one person to get on your level and be like, I hear you.

I think that's taught me a lot about how I would want to be with my kids as well as you guys have raised us, just the –

yeah, just treating them as equals as opposed to this whole authoritarian, I have power over you, I'm in charge of you.

Um, cause I think that creates this whole, oh, I'm, my feelings aren't as important, or it's not as valid, or I can't speak up for what I want to say.

Um, so yeah, I think it's just been this big lesson of, yeah, you don't know what's going on behind the scenes, and really all it takes is to just take a second out of your day to really ask that question and go, what can I do for you, you know?

And it is so crazy how, I mean, I guess for little kids, their agenda every day is just to have fun.

And I think a lot of the time we forget that.

And it's been such a joy, just like babysitting over the years, working with young kids and

But I think we forget about that and there's so many other things going on in our lives and we're so go, go, go.

But that's why I've loved working with kids, as I know you have too, because it gives you that minute to just remind you and come back to that whole, oh, my gosh, how good is it to giggle?

Or let's make a dance routine, let's do these things that, you know, we always had so much joy doing when we were little, but it's so nice as a reminder to bring you back to that and just go, it's not that serious.

Just run through the sprinklers in the garden.

Like do something silly.

I think what you're both saying, which is so beautiful, is they're very in the moment.