Walking is such a simple movement that it is taken for granted by us. We just stand up and walk! But for the old folks and babies, walking is a balancing act and a rather challenging set of coordinated movements of the muscles. For the latter, walking represents a brand new dimension of seeing the world.
Looking at XX, besides strength, walking also requires courage. XX could stand up and cruise around holding on to things for support long ago. All he needs to do is to let go of the support and take those first steps on his own. But he has yet to move beyond that and still requires people to hold his hand to walk. He can even stand alone without support, for a few seconds, until he realised that you have let go of him. Then he will quickly try to grab hold of you or squat down. Lack of confidence basically.
Yesterday, XX got a little bolder. I let go of him after he's stood up and slided a little backwards to give him some space to walk towards me. He did it! A little wobbly and almost falling into my arms at the end but he did walk at least 3 steps on his own. Good job! At one point in time, when I was distracted by the TV, XX actually let go of me and walked a few steps away from me on his own. When we realised it and started to cheer him, he realised 'hey, I'm not assisted', panicked and quickly sat down. Hai!
Well, like many things in life, walking can't be rushed. XX needs to feel ready and confident before he will take more steps. All we can do is to encourage him more and wait.
