“Miss Rachel, Miss Rachel!!” One of our youngest heroes got my attention with excitement.

“Yes?” I responded curiously.

“What are we going to do for our Halloween party?! Can we decorate cookies and wear COSTUMES?!”

“Hmmm… I wonder what we should do for our party?” I mused. “We will have to talk about it at our ending circle today. Let’s make sure we remember to talk about that, ok?!”

Later we found ourselves sitting in a circle, and discussing ideas with excitement. “We should wear costumes!” one child shouted out. “…and decorations! I love decorations!” shared another. “What about that snack with dirt and worms…like with OREOS!!” another ventured, greeted with much agreement from the others. “And what about slimy stuff like eyeballs that you feel with your eyes closed so you don’t know what it is?!” another Hero offered. “I’ve done that before, that was SO FUN!!”

As we sorted through the many ideas and landed on each person’s passionate offering, the heroes went about their day with smiles and hopeful excitement for the party they were planning!

How often do our children’s little glimmers of ideas have the space to grow and come to life? In this adult-focused world, at an adult-focused pace, it can be a rare occurrence. How beautiful it is when a child’s ideas are shared in an environment where there is room for them to dream, to ideate, and to make their idea come to life! Talk about releasing a feeling of purpose and competence – ushering in JOY!

Yes, our Hero-led Halloween party was one for the books. They helped decorate and even helped think about the “flow” of how the day should go. The best part for me was seeing how excited they were to see their own ideas come to life. And how much fun they had in the whole process – in the simple things.

It’s in the simple things they experience growth and joy. As an adult, I can sometimes forget that. Such a beautiful lesson they are teaching me!