What I've Learned From My Son - 4 & 5

#4 Go For It (or Why Walk When You Can Run?!).

The minute my son learned how to crawl, he wanted to stand. Likewise, once he could manage to walk a distance of a foot or so on his own, rather than take it slow and perfect his gait and balance, he would dash forward, head first, in an uncontrolled gallop, full speed ahead, until his momentum would be abruptly broken by a fall to the ground. All the while smiling, of course. I, on the other hand, was a ball of frayed nerves. And it was notable that there was never a time that he was discouraged by his failed attempts to run the length of the hallway; he would just get up and try, try again. I couldn't help but admire his daring, even through my lip and nail biting and finger gripping, as if holding on for dear life on the rollercoaster of my son's fearlessness. My son wasn't content enough to settle for a walk, he wanted to RUN. And RUN he would! In my own efforts, particularly if I've felt insecure or fearful, I've often thought back to my son running like the wind, even if for only a few steps, without concern for falling, and have found inspiration to stop getting in my own way with imagined scenarios of failure, and just GO FOR IT!

#5 Push your limits.

In the same spirit as Lesson #4 (Go For It), I've admired not only my son's daring attitude when conquering a new task, but his tendency to push his limits and challenge himself. When he first rolled over from his back onto his tummy, he insisted on trying to push up onto his arms and knees. The most he could achieve was a yoga semi-downward dog position. This would infuriate him so much, despite my excited adulation, that eventually I would have to swoop him up amidst his grunts and tears before he would get too discouraged. I saw the same limit pushing when he learned how to crawl; he would always get ahead of himself, trying to crawl at top speed. The same applied to his attempts at running, when he'd only just learned to walk. It has taught me that if we don't push our limits, we may never learn anything new.