The Power and Value of Connection

Acknowledged as a leading voice of inspiration, Nancy Ferrari is dedicated to helping people connect, evolve and discover their true authenticity and clarity of life purpose. As creator of her signature coaching program, Essence: It’s All About You, incorporating the principles within her book, Discover The Essence of You™, Nancy blends the power of personal development, the art of visioning, guided imagery and intentional journaling to live a life of clarity. As host of “The Nancy Ferrari Show” on W4CY.com Radio and W4WN.com Radio on The Intertainment Network, she reaches out to audiences around the globe to focus on what’s right in the world featuring people who are making a difference.

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I had the distinct honor of interviewing Kelly McNelis Senegor, founder of Women For One, on my radio show today and felt such a dynamic synchronicity with her. We spoke about many topics and aspects within Women for One and I was impressed with the level of support brought by the team throughout the Women For One global movement, the inspiring articles written and shared by women, as well as the amazing videos and interviews included on the website. My conversation with Kelly inspired me to write this blog based on one of the topics we discussed.

What I would like to expand upon was our conversation regarding the evolution of digital technology, specifically referring to how it affects parenting in a high-tech world. This topic was inspired by a commercial I recently saw which encourages parents to read, talk and sing to their children so they will thrive as adults. I shared with Kelly that those elements of raising children had been matters of common sense to me when we raised our 3 children but that as I watched the commercial, I felt sad to see a toddler in a crib crying while the mother was busy texting on her cell phone rather than paying attention to the child. Kelly brought up an excellent point in that with each generation, there was a similar element of disconnection with children. As I am a babyboomer, and experienced my childhood in the late 1950’s and early 1960’s, my mother spent a great deal of time cleaning, cooking and baking from scratch which took up much of her time. I am intentional to point out that I was not neglected, however, those were the days when parents drew upon what they knew from their own experiences and in my parents’ case, they were WWII babies as they were born and raised in Finland. There was no time for nurturing as everyone was in a state of survival, sometimes wondering if they’d even have food to eat for that day. As they immigrated to Canada and had a very limited ability to speak English, life was challenging for them in terms of employment and taking care of the needs of a family. The family dynamic was different for me due to my ethnicity and Finnish culture, however, I recall feeling grateful for how hard my parents worked to provide a home, and healthy meals. I enjoyed being read to at night, whether it was in Finnish or English.

Kelly and I agreed wholeheartedly that children gain so much from the bonding process beginning with birth, infancy and beyond. We stressed the importance of communication, as well as reading and singing to and with our children. These are moments that are to be treasured for they go by so quickly and yet form a solid foundation of values within the family.

As our conversation shifted to our present state of global technology, we acknowledged the blessings of digital technology as it allows me to host my radio show and connect with people on a global scale, just as Kelly was able to create Women for One and share her global movement with the world. There is a great emphasis on responsibility with the use of technology and teaching children how to use it properly. Careful monitoring will help prevent children from disconnecting within the dynamics of communication in a loving family environment that was set into place from the beginning.

So often, I hear that when there are issues with children, blame is often placed on a teacher or a school. What I know for sure is that it is their job to teach our children, not to raise our children. I cannot emphasize enough how important it is for your child to feel safe enough to tell you the truth or when they feel uncomfortable. We live in a fast paced society and issues that I dealt with in school were left on the playground, unlike the present time, where inappropriate behavior travels through social media at warp speed. Once again, when the focus of love and support has been established from birth within the family, a child will share what they are experiencing in their world. Unconditional love and support is so valuable and I like to say, it’s actually priceless. Let’s stay connected to one another in real ways. Remember that above all…there is love!

Nancy Ferrari