The TAURUS Child
"It'll be no use putting their heads down and saying, 'Come up again, dear!'
. . . // / tike being that person, fll come up:
If not, I'll stay down here. ..."
It may begin to be evident that your newborn baby is a Taurean when you try
to dress him to take him home from the hospital. "Put your little arms
inside your nice sweater Grandma knit for you," you'll murmur in tender,
maternal tones. "Why are you clenching your little fists and holding your
arms so stiff? Let go, like a good little baby. Please, let go."
"Let me try," says your husband. "Okay, come on now, Kid. Let's get those
arms in the sleeves. Easy does it. Hey! Did you hear me, Charlie? Let go.
Move your arms. Move them!"
The nurse comes in. "Don't be upset," she .says. "It's always hard to dress
them when they're little. My, what a good baby. Wide awake, but he doesn't
make a sound."
"Yes, he's quiet," says your husband. "But he keeps fold^ ing his arms
across his chest, and I can't pull them apart He's so strong, I can't even
pry them apart."
"I don't think he wants his sweater on," you remark uneasily, a mother
's intuition beginning to rise.
The nurse approaches your little bull with professional efficiency. "I'll do
it. All right now, upsy daisy! In the sleeve-fist first-that's the way."
She forces the tiny arm through the opening in the sweater. Suddenly, your
small bull's face turns a deep, bluish-purple-red color, and a wail is heard
that brings every nurse on the floor rushing into the room. (It's more of a
roar than a wail. The intern down the hall thought the boiler had exploded
in the basement.) Your Taurus baby is just announcing that he doesn't
appreciate being pushed. It's a warning. And it will be repeated.
Your neighbors will hear the same sound every time you try to press your May
child into doing something he doesn't want to do. There will be lots of
little problems like trying to stuff oatmeal into a mouth that's glued shut,
pressing an iron leg into a pair of rubber panties, and trying to force a
chubby, pink body, suddenly turned to unyielding cement, into the bathtub.
You'll lose lots of weight and develop strong muscular control. Mothers of
Taurus children always have muscles like Popeye, though they often look as
haggard as Olive Oyl.
Outside of being just plain pig-headed, the Taurus baby is a delight to
raise. Parents of Taurean boys and girls will find their youngsters cuddly
and loving. They adore being squeezed and hugged and petted. The little bull
with a cowlick or curly forelock will jump up on your lap to get a kiss and
leave you out of breath with his bear hugs. He'll give your friends the
same affectionate treatment, if he trusts them. The tiny Taurus girl will
flirt from the high chair to get an extra helping of dessert. She's probably
Daddy's little girl. He'll find it hard to resist her limpid charm, as
difficult as Mommy finds it to resist her Taurean son's quiet sweetness. The
children of both sexes will be strong, healthy and athletically inclined.
The boys will be all boys, sometimes little terrors, full of fun, sturdy and
tough. The little girls will be all female, taking care of their dolls like
small mothers, keeping things tidy and playing house. Some of them will be
tomboys, and you'll catch them climbing trees or shooting marbles with the
boys;
but essentially, they have all the charms of femininity to call on when they
choose, and they'll choose often.
Taurus youngsters seem to be generally more competent, even as
toddlers, than other children. For one thing, they're emotionally stable,
seldom subject to deep moods of depression, fits of impulsiveness or show-
off tendencies. They can be negative and stubborn, sometimes shy and timid,
but there are few of the normal hang-ups and growing pains. Taurean
dispositions are normally calm and pleasant. They're not easily ruffled or
disturbed. Except when they balk at being pushed too far or too hard, their
personalities are smooth, cheerful and quite predictable. There's a maturity
about them that children born under other Sun signs (except Capricorn and
Scorpio) lack. Even the very young Taureans are usually quite well-behaved
in front of company, but they'll act as if the cat got their tongues if they
're forced to be the center of attention. Leave them alone to play in the
comer and the chances are that visitors will be impressed at how well they'
ve been trained.
A Taurean youngster quietly minds his own business, and the young bull will
seldom embarrass you by rudeness or a smart-alecky attitude. However, if you
challenge his temper by teasing him (which he can't stand), by applying
steady pressure, or demanding that he do something his mind is dead set
against-he can turn belligerent. The only way out of such defiance is love.
Never force. A Taurean child who's been forced by older people too often may
turn into a silent, moody, cruel adult. Remember that he can't remain
stubborn against physical demonstrations of affection. A loving
squeeze or a big, friendly kiss and a cheerful smile will coax him out of
his obstinacy. Always speak gently and logically. Yelling and harsh voices
raised in command will just make him shut his eyes and ears. He can resist
discipline and orders until doomsday. He cant resist affection for a minute.
Even when he's very young, his mind will respond to common sense. If it
sounds reasonable to him, hell do it- but he'll want a practical explanation
. Nothing complicated. Just the plain, honest, unvarnished truth. "You
have to go to bed now because I say so," will get you nowhere at all. That'
s neither sensible nor reasonable to him. However, a softly spoken
declaration like, "You have to go to bed now because we're going to turn out
the lights. If you don't, we can't let you go out to play tomorrow, because
you'll be too tired," will probably get him into his sleepers and ready for
the sandman. It also works to say, "Hop into your warm bed now, between
your nice, clean sheets, while I tuck in your soft baby bear blanket. Then I
'll read you a little story." No matter how stubborn he has been, he'll
almost always turn into a docile angel at those words. His is a very sensual
nature, and describing the feel of things seldom fails to strike a
responsive chord. Pushing him to give in to your demands is both futile and
dangerous to his future personality.
Colors and sounds will affect his disposition and his emotions deeply.
Bright, clashing oranges and reds in his room will make him restless and
obstinate. Pastel shades, especially pink, rose and all tones of blue, will
produce almost magical results. This child will react to colors
visibly. If they're harmonious to his Taurean vibrations, he'll remain
tranquil. If they're discordant, they can literally damage his
emotional stability. Loud noises will have the same effect.
It's a good idea to give a Taurus child music or singing lessons as soon as
possible. Almost every one of them will have a low, soft, melodious voice,
and many of them have considerable vocal or musical talent, and you'll want
to discover it while he's young enough to be trained in the right direction.
Even if he's not going to make music his career, he'll enjoy listening to
it on his own little record player in his room. He may prefer the classics
to modem sounds or nursery rhymes. He'll probably like to draw, color or
paint, and the chances are good that he may have some real artistic ability.
Be sure your Taurus has lots of. paper and colored pencils. It's his
favorite way of expressing himself.
Teachers usually find the Taurus child a credit to the class. Unless there
are afflicting planet positions in fhe nativity, Taurean boys and girls will
be industrious in school, learn their lessons methodically and have
excellent powers of concentration. They're not whiz kids like the Gemini and
Aquarian or Aries students, but they probably won't be tardy or throw spit
balls in study hall, though they may break up if Teacher gets her finger
caught in the pencil sharpener. The Taurus youngster is ordinarily quite
obedient. His mind absorbs slowly, but he never forgets what he's learned,
once a fact or date is mastered. These boys and girls usually do well on
tests, because they prepare for them carefully. They're often chosen leaders
of group activities, due to their love of fair play-and also due to their
obvious common sense and good judgment.
The Taurus child may give his elders a few bad moments because of his
stubbornness, but they'll be few and far between. One mother of a young
Taurean I know took her son to school one day and was sorry she didn't stay
home and keep out of it. The little bull had insulted his teacher by
insisting her facts were wrong. Sojvas the author of the textbook, naturally
. The next day, his mother marched him to the teacher's desk with the firm
command, "Apologize to Miss Applegarden, Sammy." That was about nine o'clock
in the morning. At noon, in the principal's office, the mother was heard
wearily repeating the order, "Apologize to Miss Applegarden, Sammy." Later
in the day, after the students had been dismissed, the janitor was gathering
up trash baskets. As he passed the office, he heard a strange, faraway,
trembling voice, almost ghost-like, floating from the inner sanctum. "
Apologize to Miss Applegarden, Sammy," it said. "For the last time,
apologize." Through the closed door came the hollow sound of a wooden paddle
being applied. Then silence. The next day, the little boy was back at his
desk. He had outlasted the teacher, his mother and the principal. He never
did apologize. But he made the honor roll.
Once you're resigned to the knowledge that nothing this side of a derrick
will move your Taurus youngster when he digs his sturdy toes in the earth,
you'll enjoy watching him grow up. Hell probably get tons of dirt on his
clothes playing with his toy trucks and tractors-and the hair of lit
tle Taurean boys has the oddest way of smelling like a warm bird's nest, no
matter how often you wash it-but he won't lose his report card or his
marbles. He won't drive Dad's car too fast and end up wrapping it around a
telephone pole when he's older. He may raid the refrigerator, and eat
the fried chicken you were saving for dinner, or be tough on the new
furniture. But he'll be mighty easy on your heart when he gets big. And he
won't forget your birthday. Your little Taurus girl may tear her party dress
climbing into her tree house, or go into a rage when someone breaks one of
her precious possessions. But she'll help you bake gingerbread men, and you'
ll always be welcome in her lovely home after she's happily 'settled
down with her own family. Your grandchildren will probably be well-behaved,
in either case.
Raise your little bull or heifer in a cozy, snug atmosphere of love.
Surround him with visible affection instead of invisible barbed wire
fences. Don't pull on his homs too hard, and let him graze at his own calm
tempo. Fill his ears with music and his eyes with beauty, and he'll fill
your heart with peace someday. Even Miss Applegarden will forgive him.