Daring Girls

My daughters recently got this book: The Daring Book for Girls by Andrea J. Buchanan and Miriam Peskowitz.

Here’s what the back says – and all it says:

And in the introduction the authors say “…girlhood today has become high-pressured and competitive, and girls are inducted into grownup-hood sooner, becoming tweens and teens and adult women before their time. In the face of all this pressure,we present stories and projects galore, drawn from the vastness of history, the wealth of girl knowledge, the breadth of sport, and the great outdoors. Consider the Daring Book for Girls a book of possibilities and ideas for filling a day with adventure, imagination – and fun. The world is bigger than you can imagine, and its yours for the exploring – if you dare.”

Isn’t this great?! I love the invitation (especially for girls) to be daring, to explore, to to have spirit, and even a nose for trouble. What a different message than most of us received growing up – and even continue to hear today! So different from “keep it in control,” “don’t go outside the lines,” “be restrained,” and “recognize that you are usually the cause of trouble so make yourself small and un-dangerous.” I know, this may be a bit extreme but frankly, so is the idea of calling girls to be daring! But it shouldn’t be…and no girl or woman should hear the more common messages.

There’s a part of me that wants to read this book for my own sake; to replay my girlhood, if only in my imagination, with this as my template, my guide, my mantra: be daring.

I want to be daring. Sometimes I am. I want my daughters to be daring. Almost always they are. Undoubtedly, they are the ones who will teach me: to be spirited, have a nose for trouble, see the world as bigger than I can imagine, mine for the exploring – if I dare.

And in the midst, we’ll go through chapters that will teach us all to press flowers, play foursquare, tie a sari, know of the queens of the ancient world, turn cartwheels, do five karate moves, tell ghost stories, make paper, and so much more.

I’ve got to stop typing. I’ve got daring things to do!