Earth Signs
THE EARTH-SIGN CHILD
THE EARTH-SIGN CHILD may appear more mature than he or she really is, for earth-signs are the most sensible and practical of all the elements. They get great satisfaction from being useful, helpful, and productive, and in doing a good job. To be happiest the earth child needs to feel that he or she is competent in practical matters. Mastering practical skills and learning "grown-up" tasks are very important to him or her. They want to know how the world works, and to be effective in it. The earth-sign child will gladly be an apprentice to any grown up that is willing to teach him or her "how-to" in a real, hands-on way. Being concrete-minded and down-to-earth, this child prefers to learn by doing or to be shown rather than to be told about or to read about a subject.
Because earth-signs prefer to stick with the tried-and-true, they are not usually known for their innovative or imaginative thinking. Even the most creatively inclined of them have an urge to make something functional and useful—something that fills a real need. Beauty may be important to them but they are quite utilitarian also. Learning to sew, to do carpentry, to work with wood or clay, to fix things around the house, or simply to do chores makes them feel good about themselves. Conversely, if they fail or feel inefficient at some task, they are apt to feel inadequate as people. Giving them tasks that are appropriate for their age and not beyond their capacity to learn to do well is important.
Because they are generally reliable, earth-sign children often have responsibilities thrust upon them, and parents of an earthy child will often come to expect more adult behavior of him or her than is fair.
These children need discipline and may feel quite uncertain and insecure if there are no firm limits and boundaries set for them. They need and want to know what to expect. They can become sticklers for rules, and they don't like to deviate from the regular order of their lives. Making frequent changes upsets them for they are not very flexible, but earthy children are generally quite hardy and sturdy (except Virgo, at times). There is definitely a conservative streak in them, and even as teenagers they do, indeed, keep their feet on the ground.
THE EARTH-SIGN PARENT
THE EARTH-SIGN PARENT takes the responsibility of parenting and providing for their children very much to heart. The patience, commitment, and devotion that earthy people bring to their work extends also to their jobs as parents, and they usually derive much satisfaction from raising their children.
The earth-signs are dependable, and creating and maintaining a stable home is generally one of their talents. Because they value reliability and faithfulness, they are very good at "being there" for their children. However, they can get so preoccupied with providing for their child's material needs, or dealing with the day-to-day necessities of living, that they get less pleasure and delight from their young ones than they might. Unless another element (fire or air) is also prominent in their make up, the earth-signs may not spend much time actually playing with their children. They're not inclined to be really spontaneous or silly or exuberant, or to act in "childish" ways. Sometimes it seems that earth-sign parents feel that their parental role is to teach their child how to grow up, how to survive and succeed in the "real" world, how, in short, to be an adult. Certainly this has its advantages, for learning how to function well and to be responsible for oneself in a mature way is a gift, as is developing sound judgment and a realistic attitude towards life.
On the other hand, children are really not little adults, and sometimes earthy parents forget this. Children are often sloppier, sillier, more immature and disorganized, than the earthy parent would like. However, "nothing is freer than the mind of a child" and earth-sign parents would do well to accommodate some of the chaos children create in their play and explorations. The flexibility and creativity inherent in a young child's mind needn't and shouldn't be completely surrendered in favor of the "right" grown-up way of doing things. Neither should the magical or imaginative aspect of the child be disregarded, even though an earthy parent may not understand or appreciate it all of the time.
One blessing children can bestow on earth-sign parents is to reawaken their child-like playfulness and a sense of the magic of life.
