Why Create The EMONZ?
They weren't ONLY created to try and contribute something of use, or keep the creator company during a national lockdown. AND they weren't JUST a way to help us manage the increasing emotional pressures of a world pandemic. No. The EMONZ aren't just for Covid-19, they're for life. Because all of life can suck at times for everyone. And because...
... we need to be over shame.
Regret is useful. 'I did a bad thing' can help us learn from our mistakes. But shame has just become part of our damaging habbitual conditioning, especially in the west. Adult are plauged with thoughts and feelings of not being good enough. 'I am bad' keeps us all small and stuck in negative thinking and behavioal pattens. Challenging emotions are enough to deal with without feeling bad for having them. Enough with the shame!
" I feel like that sometimes and I love Addison"
One Of My Valued Testers, aged 6.
" When I am angry next, maybe I'll close my eyes and think of those beautiful pictures."
One Of My Valued Testers, aged 5.
... we need to let go of blame.
Yes it's not our fault we feel as we do, but it is our responsibility. Our experience of the world is not shaped by the world , but what we believe about the world. Learning how to be responsible for our own emotions and free from the need to blame others is an empowering gift. One that can help us improve our lives beyond all our wildest dreams. Yes others actions might have triggered us, but how we react and what we do next is up to us.
... we all have so much potential.
The EMONZ embody some of the wisdom and compassion that the creator explores within her role as a Buddhist Chaplain. Pema did not want to dumb this book down, but talk our kids up! She wanted to create a collection of books she wished she had read to her own children. With funny stories that she wished someone had read to her when she was a little kid. A book that helps to raise questions to explore together. After all, this is how we learn to make life better.
" I give this book 10/10. It's better than the feelings books I have at home."
One Of My Valued Testers, aged 7.
" It's basically like a lesson. To teach you that when your angry you don't have time to think."
One Of My Valued Testers ,aged 8.
... we know happiness is a skill.
If we are not shown skilful ways to deal with challenging emotions as children, as we grow we can set about developing our own or replicating unskillful ones. Some strategies end up creating even more problems. And as we get bigger, the problems we create tend to get bigger too. Learning how to relax and deal with difficult emotions as a child can really help us avoid a life time of pain.
... our world needs us to up our game.
Our personal, local and global world in impacted by how we all feel and what we believe will make us feel better. Most of us want to live in a better world yet don't fully appreciate our power to create or destroy it. This world is our responsibility. We don't inherit it from our assessors as much as borrow it from our children. Let's help them do better.
" We should try to do happy thing with angry people to help them calm."
One Of My Valued Testers ,aged 8.
" We should try to do happy thing with angry people to help them calm."
One Of My Valued Testers ,aged 8.
... we thrive by having fun.
The EMONZ are funny emotional monsters, designed to provide opportunities for reflection AND laughter. The value of keeping it light can't be over emphasised. We sometimes forget what someone say, but we never forget how someone makes us feel. The same could be said for a good book. Let us embody these lessons through laughter.