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How To Give In

“The greatness of the man’s power is the measure of his surrender.”
― William Booth

A Lesson in How To Give In

Boy with a Big Smile

Nobody ever wants to give in. Especially two kids arguing over which movie they’re going to watch. Sullivan, 7, wanted to watch some movie about a stray dog, while Bridgette, 6, wanted to watch an American Girl movie.

Boys don’t like American Girl movies. Not most of them, anyway.

So, I told the kids to work it out between them. I told them nobody was going to watch anything unless they compromised. They played rock, paper, scissors and Sully won, which made Bridgy cry. A lot. And, just when I saw no end in sight Sully put his arm around his sister and said, “Don’t cry, Bridgy. You can watch your movie.” And he took his little index finger and wiped the teardrops under her eyes. And he kissed her on the head and everything was OK.

I think this is how to give in. You love someone more than you love being right; more than you love winning; more than you love yourself. You don’t feel that in compromising you lose a piece of yourself. Instead, you think you gain something.

I thanked Sullivan for being such a generous person. He smiled from ear-to-ear like only he can.

YMCA of the Rockies Indoor Pool

YMCA of the Rockies

Keeping Secrets

When we were in Colorado, Sullivan had to take a swimming test at the YMCA of the Rockies in order to go down the big slide. He’s had swimming lessons, but it’s been a couple years. I wasn’t sure he’d pass the test, but he did. Some days later, I told him he was a really good swimmer and I asked him if he’d like to swim competitively. He asked me what that meant and after I told him he smiled really big and said, “I think for now I’d like to keep my swimming a secret.”

It is humility that makes men as angels. — St. Augustine

 

Gen X Blog Jennifer Chronicles

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2 Comments

  1. Ronea

    What a beautiful post.

    Reply
  2. Barbara

    This post really warmed my heart. I do nelieve Sullivan is an Angel in Disguise.
    Love him…

    Reply

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