Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: PROTECT (04/16/20)
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TITLE: Wild Ride | Previous Challenge Entry
By Marilyn Borga
04/22/20 -
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ADD TO MY FAVORITES
She tore down the gravel driveway at what seemed to me breakneck speed. Her thin, tan legs pumped wildly at the peddles on the tiny hot-pink bicycle. Brown pigtails bounced on her shoulders, peeking out from the silver helmet where she’d plastered multi-colored glitter stickers. At the bottom of the long slope, she skidded to a stop in a cloud of dust.
“Did you see me, Mommy?”
I waited for my heart to slow, let go of my anxiety, and called out, “You were amazing--- great job!”
Last week my husband had declared it time to shed the training wheels from the bicycle. His hours spent running beside her, coaching her on balance, turning, stopping, had paid off. Her initial trepidation was quickly replaced with confidence and bravado at her new skill.
As for me, I’d become a worrywart five years earlier, when I’d first held that small bundle of beautiful, gangly, squirming, breathing life in my arms. She seemed so helpless, so vulnerable, and suddenly, so very essential to my world. The fierceness of my love surprised me. It brought great joy into my life---and a degree of anguish. My compulsion to protect her from all harm seemed to color every normal milestone with a little gray cloud.
Once she’d stopped nursing, I obsessed about proper nutrition. When she started to crawl, I cheered, then searched for hidden hazards lurking in the corners of our home. Walking? How soon until she might escape my grasp and run off into the path of a vehicle… Now, here she was, able to ride a two-wheeler and ride it fast. Next year she’d start school, out of my sight, out of my control.
“Loni’s not a fragile Christmas ornament to be packed away in a cotton-lined box,” my husband had told me. “She’s a resilient, intelligent human being. Our duty as parents is to give her love and nourishment to grow, but also, the freedom to mature. We have to let go and allow her to become who she was created to be.”
I watched now as she scanned the street. She had never yet disobeyed our strict rule to not set foot beyond the drive. I held my breath and only exhaled when she began to scoot the bike around. The wheels wobbled precariously in the loose gravel as she began the upward climb. With a determined set to her jaw, she struggled to the top and with a gleeful laugh, started right back down again.
With equal determination, I set aside my gloomy visions of skinned knees and sprained ankles. I recalled once more Jesus’ words: “Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” I can be a rather slow learner; I have to be reminded regularly.
I’ve learned that there are no guarantees for a pain-free existence. Life can be a wild ride. I cannot stop bad things from happening simply by loving my daughter enough. Her future may well be fraught with trials, pain, and dangers, but I pray that triumphs and joys will also abound.
Her father and I will continue to do all we can to keep our daughter safe. The most important step has been to teach her about Jesus. Her heart has been tender and pliable as we speak of his love and sacrifice. We wait in eager anticipation for the day when she chooses to invite him into her heart, for that is the day when her true protection will be assured.
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Fiction based on life’s experiences. Jesus’ words from Matthew 6:34 (NKJV)
But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. Psalm 5:11 (ESV)
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