Bucket Filling and Bucket Dipping

We planned yesterday's trip to the mall as an alternative to staying inside the house with no electricity for four hours (there was a notice of repair in our village from the local electric provider). The baby needs her baptismal dress, a new pair of shoes and a new pair of socks to go with them, so it was as good a chance as it can get. Of course, our toddler went with us.



What was supposed to be a lovely afternoon focused on our youngest kids turned sour as I carelessly dipped into Mama Sez bucket. I didn't realize how bad it was until I read her message this morning. The negative effect of that bucket dipping has drained her energy and left her unfocused for most of the day today.



I am thankful that she showed signs of recovery this evening and was cheerful during our nightly gratitude ritual.



If you are not familiar with bucket filling and bucket dipping, this book by Tom Rath and Donald O. Clifton, Ph.D.--the grandfather of positive psychology, was the source of these terms.

It's interesting that I was the one who made extra efforts to read the book with Mama Sez and then with our eldest daughter, but still violates its teachings...well, not as often as before, I hope.



I recommend this book for better relationships within the family, workplace, organizations and life in general. It has opened my eyes to the folly of pessimism and negativity. Moreover, there is a huge negative impact of bucket dipping in organizations, from families to companies and communities. They have data to back this conclusion.



Here's what I wrote to our eldest daughter when I gave it as a gift that I didn't have to buy last Christmas. It helps explain why it's important for me to have been introduced to this concept of positive psychology.

"24 Dec 2009



Dearest Ycai,



I thought of giving you this book that your Mama and I eagerly bought to learn more about "bucket filling."



I was a little apprehensive at first that the topic might be too early for you. But then I decided that it would be good to start you off as early as possible and open your eyes to the power of positivity.



You inherited traits that tend to make you quite cautious and pessimistic in disposition as well as make you focus on the negatives of others and yourself. There are certain good outcomes in such tendencies, but then anything in extreme is undesirable. That's why it's important for you to learn and train yourself to balance your natural tendencies with positive psychology.



Let's read this book together, so I'll be reminded (as I tend to do bucket dipping mostly instead of filling) and we can learn together.



Merry Christmas my manita.



Exchanging gifts that we do not buy was a great idea.



Love, Papa"

Earth Hour in the Neighborhood

After a couple of hours of play at the UPLB Freedom Park, College, Laguna, the family headed to Bonito's where the kids had pizza and the adults enjoyed the house specialty, caldereta. Because of the before dinner bread, chips and slurpee at the park, the kids' attention was not really into food. They found a hangout in front of the television in the middle of the restaurant. What's supposed to be a cool place to relax intended for college dudes and dudettes became a play area for the kids.



I was only reminded about earth hour a few minutes into 8:30 when we started to settle down in Ami's apartment. While preparing for an hour without electricity, I was checking out the neighborhood (at least those that are visible from the apartment) and was quietly hoping that majority of the houses would participate in this simple gesture of sacrificing an hour of comfort. But boy was I disappointed. Ours was the only unit in the six-door apartment building that had our lights out for the duration of the event. When I pointed it out, our eldest said that the others might not know about earth hour or perhaps they did know but didn't care.

The skies were clear and we can see the moon and the stars from the front yard/garage. A pretty good ambiance to talk to the kids about why we're supporting this event and the impact it might have on climate change. We played the game "weave a story" after so many months of not doing it.



It's basically starting with "Once upon a time..." and the next person has to continue the story to any direction he or she fancies. Our kids are getting really good at it. We were still using the familiar prince or princess theme but the plot gets more complicated and amusing at the same time. They're also quite creative about the names of the characters. The story ended with "Atlas" getting banished for asking for money for the big rock he gave as a gift to the king and annoying the princess by not offering her a gift. The part about the scroll with the secret to staying forever young taken from inside the rock when it was split into two remained undeveloped...perhaps a starting point for a later game.



Our toddler only listened to us while we weave the story. I am confident that he'll soon join in the fun as he more recently have always wanted to do whatever it is his older siblings does.



I am thankful for the opportunity to spend time with the kids and talk to them about energy conservation, the environment and climate change, as well as play a game we've always enjoy playing when they were younger.

Big Bubble Walk in the Pool

I have seen kids get engulfed by a huge bubble during my daughter’s Bubble Show birthday party. But being able to walk while inside a bubble was new to me. It was our nephew's 4th birthday and we celebrated it at Garden Oasis in Obrero, Davao City.



The highlight was the Bubble Walk in the pool which was the first and only Bubble Walk in Davao City. There were two available units which can be used for a maximum of 15 minutes. The person should step inside as the clear plastic at the pool side is being filled with ambient air until it forms a huge ball. It is then sealed and pushed to float in the pool like a big bubble. The person inside must balance himself as he tries to walk or run, but more often crawl for lack of expertise, lol.



This is indeed a challenging act that our 10-year-old daughter, Rica, managed to learn before her turn was over. I must say I admired her perseverance to continue despite falling over and over during her first attempts, and for her sense of balance and concentration that helped her gain momentum. She said that talking inside felt like her ears were both covered but it was lots of fun as she tried to run after and bump her cousin’s bubble.

Our seven-year-old son tried it as well, but only managed to take 4 steps maximum and then falls. Nevertheless, he enjoyed it very much and would love to do it again...to fall over and over again. Well, who can blame him? He was after the fun and not the skill especially when he can manage to move by crawling. The 50 pesos per 15 minutes charge is sure worth it. We owe the opportunity and the fun to this wonderful family.

This is great for pool parties. If there is a big group of people interested to learn or practice bubble walk or simply to have fun inside, then it is better to rent it out for 1500 pesos for a whole day of fun.