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Hello, my name is Jelani Asantewa.
One day while watching CBS This Morning they announced that twins had been born on Saturday, August 22, 2015, to Mei Xiang a Giant Panda at the National Zoo in Washington DC. I love watching babies at play (human and animal). They are SO CUTE! So it is no surprise that when they said that they could be watched on the zoo's live cam I went immediately to my computer and pulled up the site. Cub wise, there was not a lot to see because mom was doing her mom job and keeping the cub cradled close to her body to keep it warm. (The invisible zoo veterinarian team gave her one cub at a time to care for and kept the other feed and in an incubator until the next switch - which I learned by reading the FAQ section on the site). However allusive the whole process, it was fun to watch all Mei's mothering going on. I made frequent trips to the site and was always thrilled when I was able to catch a glimpse of a cub as she put it down for a moment or re-arranged it on her body. After a couple of days of watching there came bad news. Sadly one cub did not make it, living only until Wednesday of the same week.
I mourned the loss with the rest of the world, but stayed steadfast on lookout at my computer. Moving back and forth between camera one and camera two I keep watch over the little family. The remaining cub was so tiny it looked like a small albino lizard or a hairless mouse. It was hard to see because mom still kept it cuddled close, rarely putting it down. Everyday, throughout the day, I peeped in on the cub and his mom Mei for a few minutes. As days went by it grew and it became easier and easier to catch glimpses of it. I was hooked. Meanwhile, I also started watching YouTube videos of panda cubs at nurseries in China. There were pandas climbing out of cribs, pandas going down slides and pandas riding on toddler rocking horse toys. I was surprised and fascinated because I didn't know anything about pandas, especially how much their play was exactly like that of human babies. Weeks into my new obsession the baby's sex was determined - It's a Boy! The paternity was established to be Tian Tian, a Giant Panda that also lives at the National Zoo. On September 25, 2015 he was given his name by U.S First Lady Michelle Obama and the People's Republic of China First Lady Madame Peng Liyuan - Bei Bei ("precious treasure" in Mandarin). Months of watching went by. He went from turning himself in circles, to crawling, to clumsily walking along side the den wall for support. By February he had become very sure of himself and was playing with his mom and eagerly exploring the areas around him.
On Sunday February 21, 2016, mid-morning, I made one of my regular checks on the live cam and found Bei Bei out and about. This particular day I decided to throw caution to the wind, not worry about chores and treat myself to watching him at play. That morning I watched him for the longest period, at one sitting, that I had ever done before. He was adorable. He reminded me of my son, now grown and the illustrator of this book, when he was in his toddler and preschooler years. All over the place and into everything!
These formative years are the time of discovery: simple new foods, toys, games and discovering new play areas. It is also a time when important cognitive and non-cognitive skills are developing and need to be nurtured. All babies, no matter what gender or species, must traverse these rights of passage into healthy mental and physical growth.
It was that day, that very pleasurable day, when I watched a baby boy panda explore his new world, discover new toys and foods, make decisions and interact with his loving and caring parent that I saw not a panda, but a baby learning and developing.
As with all babies, all that learning demands a lot of energy. After about 45 minutes Bei Bei had played himself out. He slowly made his way back to the nursery den for a nap. It is at this time, watching him restlessly settle into sleeping mode, that I was inspired to write this children's book - not about one particular baby but about the profound dynamics of play on learning and "being" - in all babies, everywhere.
Jelani K. Asantewa |
