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www.GilbertPT.com April 2018
The Gilbert Gazette
INTERNATIONAL CHILDREN’S BOOK DAY
What We Can Learn From ‘The Little Engine That Could’
T his month is
full of fun holidays. On April 1, we celebrated April Fool’s Day and Easter. On
WHEN WE ARE CHILDREN, WE BELIEVE THAT WE CAN CONQUER THE WORLD. AS WE GET OLDER, WE BEGIN TO DOUBT OUR ABILITIES, AND BY THE TIME WE ARE ADULTS, WE OFTEN MAKE EXCUSES FOR OURSELVES.
April 2, we celebrated International Children’s Book Day. This holiday is not well-known, but it reminds me of the time I spent reading to my children before they went to bed. One of their favorite childhood books is one that kids and adults can relate to: “The Little Engine That Could.” As an adult, I have always loved self-help books and stories about perseverance. As many of you know, mindset plays a huge part in your recovery during physical therapy, and although I’ve always known this to be true, I didn’t read “The Little Engine That Could”with the intention of teaching my kids that lesson. Honestly, it was just the book they enjoyed the most! Plus, they were so young that there was no way they could have wrapped their brains around that philosophy if I had tried to teach it to them. It was truly just a happy coincidence. The story is about a train engine who didn’t believe he could carry his load of toys and dolls up over a mountain. Even though he doubted his ability at first, his friends encouraged him along the way, and every time he was faced with adversity, he said, “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.” We read the book so often that my kids eventually began saying that iconic line along with me. The book ends when the engine makes it to his destination and delivers the toys to the children. The story teaches kids that having
the right mindset, positive reinforcement from
their friends, and a can-do attitude will help them accomplish any task they set their minds to, even when they think they can’t. This book can be even more inspiring to adults than to kids in some ways. When we are children, we believe that we can conquer the world. As we get older, we begin to doubt our abilities, and by the time we are adults, we often make excuses for ourselves. We sometimes don’t even attempt things we might be good at, because they feel too hard or we can’t find motivation. But if we can get past our own limitations and lean on positive reinforcement, we can overcome obstacles, set better examples for our kids, and achieve more in life. “The Little Engine That Could” teaches kids a valuable lesson, and it’s a lesson that many adults can benefit from relearning too. Patients who come into the clinic and expect not to improve will have a harder recovery. But if you have a positive attitude and push through the pain and the doubt, you will get there. I hope you had a great Easter. We will see you soon. –Michael M Gilbert, DPT
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