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PARENTS: HOW DO YOU REACT?

When it came to our children’s younger days in school, they pretty much were raised in a semi-protected environment. They all went to pre-school at our church in Florida. As the minister, they know Daddy was just down the hall; in fact Deb was the Assistant Director.

But once they reached first grade, that all changed. They were in public school with many other children. Mom and Dad weren’t right down the hall. One of the saddest times for me was when our youngest, Zachary, started public school. His first grade year was a big adjustment from pre-school and He didn’t like it.

One night, I went to check on the boys after we had put them to bed and I stopped short of the door because I heard them talking...the discussion about broke my heart. Zach said, "Rusty, I don’t like school." His big brother, who was 8 at the time, tried to console him by asking why. Zach said, "It’s too long, and we do work all day." Rusty said, "Zach, that’s what school is for." Zach was quiet for a moment and said, "Well, I don’t like it. I wish I was a baby again."

Now, should I have just run in there and held him saying, "It’s okay, buddy, you’re never going to have to go to that school again!" OR "We’ll find a school with a shorter day." Oh, I felt like doing that. My heart wanted to do that. But if I had rescued him then, when would he have ever learned to make it without me?

Let me ask you...When your child encounters difficulty, say at school, how do you react?

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