Duck and Lesson Learned

I have referred to this sentiment for as long as I can remember. In all the mistakes I have made, I always tried to learn and move forward. I have also believed the lesson I was learning, no matter how painful, would teach me something I would need to know in my future. 

Many times I have watched my children struggle through life’s sadness. I remember a specific time when one of them was going through a very difficult situation in middle school. One day, as we were traveling together in the car, we discussed the circumstances. It was a very sad time for me to watch and listen to the story. It was miserable and I wished there was something I could do even if it was just on their behalf. Unfortunately, there was nothing. It wasn't my problem to get involved in. We all know what it feels like when our children are hurting. We want to console our children, we also want to protect them. I guess these feelings created the adage, “Mother Bear!”  

As we talked about strategies and options, I brought up the Disney movie, “The Lion King”. There is a scene in the movie where Rafiki (the wise counselor) hit Simba on the head with this staff…Simba immediately rubbed his head in pain and Rafiki, in answer to why he did that, said, “It doesn’t matter, it is in the past. The past can hurt. But the way I see it, you can either run from it or learn from it.” My child remembered the movie scene and pointed out that as Rafiki made the move to hit Simba again, Simba ducked. Simba learned. 

The incident my child struggled with came and went. It was survived and they learned a lot! From that moment on, whenever anyone in our family has dealt with a painful experience…they remind us…the pain is in the past. They now, definitely look to the future and brings those life lessons with them. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZfGTL2PY3E You can watch the scene by clicking here ☺