Being a parent has been one of life’s greatest blessings for me. I am amazed at how my boys grow and learn new things every day. Their minds are like sponges. Always listening, asking questions and learning.
As adults, we think that WE are the ones that should be teaching them everything. After all, that is our job as parents. But then they say or do something amazing that makes us stop in our tracks and revel at how deeply they think or how they view the world.
About two years ago, when my older son was five, he wanted to set up a lemonade stand in the summertime. We lived on a pretty slow street without much traffic, but he was persistent that it was what he wanted to do that day. I helped him make a sign and we set up a table outside with lemonade. It was a gorgeous summer day and as I watched him sit at the table with the biggest smile on his face, I was secretly hoping to myself that there would be a few kind people that would stop and make his day by buying lemonade. As a parent, seeing your child disappointed hurts your heart too.
As I watched him walk around and hold up the Lemonade sign to EVERY car that passed, it was a proud moment for me as a mom. I thought to myself what a brave, determined son I am raising. He didn’t care what other people might think. No way was he self-conscious. He knew what he wanted to do and put himself out there.
He stood outside for an hour before even selling ONE glass of lemonade, but he DID NOT give up. As the day went on (he even insisted on having a “working” lunch outside 🙂 ), he ended up selling a lot more lemonade. Some of our kind neighbors bought from him and a surprisingly large amount of people that we didn’t even know stopped their cars and made his day by buying lemonade. It was heartwarming watching him have so much fun. And, truthfully, it also reinforced my faith that there truly are still good, kind people in the world.
He sold for a total of five hours that day. Yes, five hours. He made a total of $18.00 in that time. For a five year old selling lemonade, I was pleasantly surprised (and proud) that he was so determined and made that much money.
PUT YOURSELF OUT THERE. NEVER GIVE UP. That was the reminder my son gave me that day.
Some days I could only wish I was as brave as he was. Put myself out there, give it my all, not care what other people think and work toward my goal. I still think about that day and I have used the inspiration he gave me to start this blog…..not only to start it, but to continue on writing and not give up.
But the story doesn’t end there.
He was so proud of himself for making money selling lemonade that a few weeks later, he decided he wanted to try to sell golf balls. Our backyard is right next to a golf course, so he and his brother had collected a large bucket of golf balls over time and he saw that as another opportunity to add to the money he was saving 🙂
I hesitated…..I wasn’t sure that selling golf balls was a good idea. Would anyone really stop to buy a golf ball?! The protective mom in me took over. I didn’t want his heart to be broken if no one stopped. When I told him I wasn’t sure if anyone would want to buy golf balls, he said to me “How will I know if I don’t try?”
My mouth dropped open. I literally had no words. He was exactly right.
HOW WILL I KNOW IF I DON’T TRY? Another great thing my son reminded me of. It carries over to my blog perfectly. How would I ever know if blogging was something I was meant to do if I didn’t try it? How would I know if anyone would be interested in what I had to say if I didn’t try it? Being vulnerable and putting yourself and your stories out there is scary and intimidating (and that’s putting it mildly). But if I never took that leap, I would have never discovered that creating this blog has been one of the most enjoyable things I have ever done in my life.
If you are reading this and have that certain something in the back of your mind that you have been wanting to try but keep putting off (you know you do!)…….this is your sign to do it. Go for it. Step out of your comfort zone. Put yourself out there and don’t give up. Sure, comfort zones are safe, but no one has ever learned new things or grown as a person by staying where they are comfortable.
We certainly do teach our kids about life.
But really, the little ones we raise continuously remind us what life is all about.
