Hey, Nice Shoes!

Remember, It's a Big World Out There

Myopia. Ask any kid and they'll tell you – it's the home planet from AVATAR.

Most Millenials raised to believe the Sun rises and sets on them have a pre-existing sense of myopia. Increasingly, social consciousness and cultural awareness must be taught – sometimes in a heavy-handed manner.

Recess Music attempts to perform a gentle intervention for our naval-gazing youngsters.

The company aims to entertain, encourage, and educate children and families through Earth-friendly music. Founder and CEO Nancy Doan hit the ground running in 2010. The company has released numerous CDs in its "Celebrate Earth" and "Best Foot Forward" series.

Their latest release, "Someone Else's Shoes" continues to stress the values of community, participation, awareness, friendship, and common courtesy. Fifteen tracks cover "Team Work" (The Uncle Brothers), "Say Something Nice About Somebody" (The Happy Crowd), "Take A Walk in Someone Else's Shoes" (Swingset Mamas), and "Be Nice to Old People" (Jamie Broza).

For the child who feels like an outsider, Dan Dan Doodlebug sings "There's No Such Thing As Normal":

There's no such thing as normal my mother once explained.
'Cause everyone is different, no two people are the same.
There are so many ways to be and different things to do,
There's no such thing as normal so have fun and just be you.

A timely theme addressed throughout the Best Foot Forward series is bullying. Recess Music dedicated an entire CD (Big Bully) to the topic last year and return with more tracks on this collection. On "You Hurt My Feelings," Troubadour sings about the emotional cost of careless words. The Hill Brothers are more direct on "There's No Place for Bullies In Our School." And who could disagree with the sentiment of Mike Soloway's "Please Stop Hurting My Feelings"?

With a toddler just starting to notice that other children may be interesting – and might be interested in him – these CDs are a nice way to introduce the co-joined concepts of self-worth and community. Recess Music stresses "Music for the Dance of Life." There's no better way to get a toddler on his feet than to give him access to your stereo system and "Someone Else's Shoes" gives you a good reason to do just that.

"Someone Else's Shoes" is available on Tuesday, July 31 through iTunes, Amazon, and the Recess Music website.