One of the most refreshing moments of my life was interviewing Anna Tardos. She is the daughter of Emmi Pikler and a respected voice in early childhood development. She is also the first Pikler baby.
That was my biggest question.
What was it like to be the first child raised with this approach?
What did it feel like to grow up in a world built around respectful care?
Anna smiled when she answered. She said, “I had a good upbringing. Everything a child could need, but that is not everything”
Then she paused.
She told me how she and her mother lived through the Nazi invasion of Hungary.
How loyal patients of her mother helped hide them.
How she learned that care begins with presence, and childhood experiences shape the core of a person.
Anna’s words stayed with me.
Good care gives children a solid ground to stand on.
Experience builds strength.
Hard moments shape character.
That was my takeaway.
Resilience grows when children are given care they can count on, and room to respond to the world.
They won’t always live in safe, quiet rooms.
But they can carry calm with them.
And when the world shakes, they can stay upright.
They can try again.
That’s what I saw in Anna.
And that’s what I carry into every moment I spend with a child.
