A Falls Church mother of two boys in city schools presented her new book about enabling children to flourish as leaders which she presented Nov. 8 at a joint meeting of the PTAs at Meridian High, Mary Ellen Henderson Middle and Falls Church City Elementary schools.

Autumn Swain’s first and only book (another one is in the works) is titled “The Playground Leader: Life-Changing ABC’s for the Whole Family” which grew from her passion and experience working with youths at a non-profit organization.

Why wait for children to grow up when all their talents and abilities could benefit the world now, she asks.

Swain said one-third of today’s global population is under 20 years old.  Imagine harvesting their energies, talents and curiosities to use today and visualize the increase in well being and hope.  

“They can be leaders for today, not just tomorrow,” Swain said. 

Young people show they can lead, in spite of subconscious signals they are not qualified. “Some of our greatest hope is found in our young; it’s where the most untapped potential lies” and where “making the world a better place exists.”

Show your children real life examples and ask them questions instead of telling them what to do. Greater success results when they help with answers. 

By integrating a plan for your children, instead of telling them tasks to do after school, she herself found success with her boys by posting chores on the refrigerator. 

It’s not only the young who can benefit from her strategies. Adults can find answers to realizing their own goals by finding the time to do all those things they’ve thought about for so long.

The time to begin is now.

In her talk Swain said it is possible to do what you want to do by being flexible and changing your life a little bit. She cited a recent personal example of trying to find more time to read and exercise.

Because her husband was out of town for several days, she was not able to go to the gym as often as she liked but she can take a walk and listen to audiobooks.  

She said it’s important to do something you enjoy or you won’t want to continue it.  

How can anyone pursue balance in life when we’re all so busy? Life can be overwhelming. It happens and it’s always happening, she said, but it’s important to recognize life’s social, mental, physical, spiritual and economic aspects and keep them aligned for when one goes out of balance, the other areas will be impacted.

Concentrate on the area you think needs the most attention. Do what you know you can keep doing and be flexible when you know you have to be. Accept change. 

“We want our kids to be flexible,” Swain said,  and we want to be flexible, too.”

She quotes Mother Teresa in her book:  “None of us including me ever do great things but we can do small things with great love and together do something wonderful.”

Before Swain talked, Tara Villano, Meridian’s PTSA president, introduced David Jeck, the new interim head of secondary schools for Falls Church who briefly addressed the groups who met at Meridian.

Swain said she wrote her book “to make a difference.” It’s for sale on Amazon in paperback, audio, and Kindle formats.