Giving New Meaning to Parenting

I tend to worry, a lot. I worry about everything. You’ve probably noticed that theme in a column or two of mine here. Thankfully, I have not yet passed along that affliction to my children.

The middle of last week, my son left his very favorite stuffed animal at after school care. He is still learning to keep better track of this things. It’s something we’ve been working on all school year.

I feared for the worst, that it was gone forever. I worried all night. I tried not to tell him that I was as worried as I was.

When I asked him about what we should do the next day, he said, “Oh mom, it’s not a problem. They put out a lost and found table at lunch time. I am sure my Orca whale will be there.” and just like that he was satisfied. He didn’t need to give it another thought.

The next morning, when he entered his class first thing in the morning, one of his classmates handed him the Orca whale stuffed animal in question. I don’t know where it came from, or how the friend came to be in possession of it. My son didn’t think to interrogate his friend and get all of those details. I suspect this friend was given the stuffed animal in the morning extended care by the teachers who knew it belonged to my son.

Whatever the method by which this stuffed animal found his way home, I learned that my son with his absence of worry, didn’t spend the previous night in restless sleep. He just knew his stuffed animal would turn up. Every once in a while, you teach something to your children. More often then that, they teach things to you.