A vivid dream wakened me! The intensity of the dream forced me to sit up and exclaim, "We could make a video!"
I believe that God speaks to us in many ways, the unconscious and the dream world being one. I listened and acted on the dream. My colleague, Ellen Coker, and I brain stormed how to get new information from the 1996 White House Conference on Children out to parents. Researchers reported that the brain is not fully developed at birth, and stimulation throughout the child's early years increases and optimizes neuronal connections in the brain. Nature (the genetic map we're born with) and nurture (the experiences we have) have dual roles in shaping who we are to become.
We felt strongly that parents and caregivers needed to know how important early experience is in the first years of a child's life. We knew from our experience of working with families in a prevention of child abuse program that most families have a television and VCR. We decided a video might indeed be the vehicle to convey the message. Friends discouraged us, saying "what do you know about producing a video?"
Tending Gifts
We began to look for support, appreciating signals that came in a variety of surprising ways. Sarah Ban Breathnach wrote in her book Simple Abundance about keeping the dream alive. "Once you begin to nurture Divinity's dream... you will grow into your talent." At the same time, Oprah Winfrey emphasized the wisdom of "following one's passion". We did not begin with the expertise and knowledge to produce a video, but we had passion for children and families.
Elizabeth O'Connor, in Eighth Day of Creation wrote. "When we talk about being true to ourselves --- being the persons we are intended to be --- we are talking about gifts. We cannot be ourselves unless we are true to our gifts." Ellen and I focused on calling forth our gifts and naming those we saw in each other. We gained confidence in our abilities to fulfill the dream.
In The Artists Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity, Julia Cameron writes, "Once you accept that it is natural to create, you can begin to accept a second idea --- that the Creator will hand you whatever you need for the project." From the first moments, we knew a Higher Power guided us.
Pricing
We chose the non-profit route to ensure the video would be a reasonable price for families and non-profit agencies to purchase and began writing grants and networking. Opportunities opened unexpectedly. A Head Start Director exclaimed, "I want to be a partner in this!" The Human Services Committee at Hewlett-Packard Company supported us wholeheartedly. The Colorado Department of Education gave us financial backing. The Human Development and Family Studies Department at Colorado State University sponsored us and the University Department of Instructional Services provided the production efforts, an in-kind gift of $25,000. Families and professionals agreed to be filmed, donating their time; a graphic artist team donated the artwork for the video sleeve. There had to be some Divine Guidance supporting this project!
Eighteen months later, Helping Babies Learn was complete. The video was further affirmed when it received "Telly Award" award for non-broadcast videos. 2000 videos sold in the first year and we hoped every day-care center in the country would eventually have one.
With increased confidence and competence, Helping Toddlers Learn was completed in six months. We are now writing curriculum for using the videos in classes and day-care personnel training.
The most important lesson we learned was that of listening to God's call in our lives and honoring it, however it may come. We felt God's guidance throughout the process and are amazed at the result!
Sonia Nornes is a social worker in Fort Collins CO. Each video is available in English or Spanish for $10.00 (postpaid). Fax: 970-223-5786 or call Ellen at 970-223-0128.