Sometimes it's hard to find a balance between putting buddy into uncomfortable situations so that I can hopefully help him learn to cope and get through them and sheltering him from the things that make him nervous. Today was one of those days... Brandt has typically been very aggressive and tends to react physically when he gets upset-when he's around family and close friends. In social settings he tends to get more anxious and pulls into his shell. Today was his first wrestling match and I worried that he would get upset/nervous when someone he didn't know was in his bubble, especially with all of the chaos and yelling that was bound to be happening. That's exactly what happened the first time he wrestled. He looked at me with his eyes pleading to get him out of the situation and he let the other kid pin him rather quickly. He came off the mat and crumpled into me and whispered and begged me not to make him do it again. It would have been so easy to let him quit. Instead, I let him turn down his 2nd turn wrestling and we had a little pep talk and then I sent him out again. He was still super nervous (note his hands in his pockets pulling his shorts clear up at the start of it-classic Brandt "thing" when he's nervous or excited) but he was able to get through it much better. It's humbling to see that he was looking to me for help even when he was winning and that he listened for my voice to help coach him through it. There were tender mercies throughout the match, including the "coincidence" of Brandt's hero, Mitch, being the referee on the mat that he ended up on-just one more evidence of a loving Heavenly Father who is always watching over us and cares about even the smallest details of our lives. So, even though his pleading brown eyes tugged at my heart strings and I wanted to gather him up and take him home to his safe place, I'm thankful that this time I didn't "save" him. The medal and smile at the end made it worth it and hopefully it will be something that will help buddy know that he can do hard things and that we'll be cheering him on every step of the way.
After an afternoon of celebrating at Arctic Circle and a quick trip to Georgetown to pick up a load of hay, Kylie and I went to the stake baptisms in order to support Cooper Crowsen and Jacoby Izaat. Cooper and his parents have just recently become more active at church and Jacoby and his siblings have been coming to primary and taking the missionary discussions thanks to the Sellar's-our ward missionaries. There was a special spirit there and I'm glad I was able to take Kylie with me to witness it. When we got home, the kids and I headed to Garden City to play at the pool with Gabe, Mariah, and Max (Mariah's "good friend" who also happens to be Mitch's younger brother and a really great kid.) They had another movie night and my kids were excited to watch "Epic." We had such a fun night playing in the water. Brandt followed Gabe's example and started jumping off the deep end (with his life jacket on) in order to try to catch a football that either Mariah, Max, or I would throw. I was so proud of him for doing something that made him nervous! Even though his head would go under the water each time, he kept trying again and again until he finally caught the ball once toward the very end. He and Kylie both made great chaperones for our teenage friends. It seemed that each time Riah and Max would get too attached to each other, one of my kids was splashing them or swimming right between them. I know that they weren't doing anything inappropriate, but I joked and told them that I certainly didn't oppose a little space between them. They really are amazing kids and the best of friends, but I know first hand how Satan can use our becoming casual and complacent to his advantage. I find that all the time with other things-such as the simple things like scripture study and prayer and the bigger things like temple attendance. The more lax I get about following through with those basics, the more I struggle with getting through the day to day trials with any kind of peace or comfort in tact. I have also found that there is strength in obeying our Father's commands and that is one of the ways we can arm ourselves and our families as we battle against Satan in these last days. How thankful I am for my family-they give me a reason to keep fighting!
No comments:
Post a Comment