Growth through Struggle

I watched my sons head dip under water as he struggled to break back above the surface. I was in arms reach, I was watched closely, but I did not offer help. I did not grab him and pull him to the surface. I knew if I did that, if I reached out and pulled him up he would never learn to swim.

It pained me to watch him struggle with all he had and barely to keep his nose above water, to watch him thrash around and to feel that I wasn't being a good mom to him because I wasn't there for him the second he began to struggle, but if i did that he would not have learned to swim. If I grabbed him and pulled him up every time he started to dip under the edge of the water then he would not be safe the next time he was near waters edge without me.

I waited and when he went to grab hold of me I stepped back slightly. But, then he did it, he kept his head above water long enough to draw a breath and then he dove back under, swam to the edge and pulled himself out. Watching this was like a watching a miracle and I felt tremendous relief knowing that he was on his way to being able to save himself should he ever find himself near deep waters alone. Of course, I wasn't going to let that happen, he was never and had never been in any danger. of course it was right by his side, within arms reach, never giving him a chance for anything bad to happen, but letting him learn, letting him learn to survive because swimming, like many things in life, is one of those things no one can do for you, you just have to be thrown in the deep end and learn to survive, knowing that God will never let you fall, not really, even if it feels like it while you're trying to push your nose above the surface.