Adversity

Sometimes I worry that my kids won't have what it takes to make it through the tough times of life.  Many times a day they crumble into emotional surrender at the slightest hint of a challenge.  Practicing the piano.  Doing homework.  Picking up toys.  Putting away clean laundry.  Being nice to each other.  Depending on their mental state at any given moment a request to help with any of these requests could be met with apparent incapacitation, accompanied by expressions of agony and supreme indignance that anyone would even think of asking them to do such things.

Today I found that, in fact, when the going gets tough they really can hack it.  And I'm not talking about tough like, "Mom asked me to empty the dishwasher, and then Dad wanted me to mow the lawn" tough.

We went to check out an air show today at the nearby Air Force base.  It's a bit cool for this time of year, and there was some rain in the forecast, but we didn't think that major precautions against bad weather were necessary.  We drove to the base, parked the car, and walked at least a mile to the show entrance.  It was overcast and breezy, and some of the kids in shorts complained a bit.  We basically ignored them, pointed out the cool aerobatics going on overhead, and mostly enjoyed ourselves.

After we had been watching the show for a while the weather suddenly took a turn for the worse.  A full-on thunderstorm arrived with high winds and heavy rain.  We had three sweatshirts for the seven of us.  It was hopeless to try to stay dry or keep enjoying the show.  With droves of other people we began the long walk back to the car, being pelted and lashed with rain that soaked us through and even stung at times.

Given the reaction I might get at home for simply asking someone to put on their shoes or set the dinner table I half expected at least some of them to crumble to the tarmac as the rain poured down on us, and declare that they could not face the walk back to the car.  They did no such thing.  It was a miserable experience, heads down, squinting eyes, fighting through wetness and windchill that made the 49F temperature feel more like 35F.  Amidst the physical discomfort, and even pain, they soldiered on resolutely.

There were a few words of encouragement spoken, but no cajoling or convincing was needed.  They seemed to understand that our plight, though not particularly serious, was also not going to go away by complaining or throwing tantrums.  The only way out was to take care of ourselves, even if that meant marching through the freezing rain.  They seemed to grasp the gravity of the situation without our intervention, and rose to the occasion resolutely.

As we sat in the car, laughing over how cold and soaked we really were, we waited for the heat to thaw us out.  Long before the heat made me feel better physically, my heart was warmed to see how resilient they all were, and from thinking back on the way they had just helped each other through shared trial with such grace and strength.  The air show had been rained out, but in the end I got to see something much more impressive and exciting.