Parenthood - Part 2

On Monday night, the night Gillian came home at 7:00, I came home at 9:00, back from a school meeting. Such a waste of time these meetings; honestly, things could be done way more efficiently using emails. Anyways, coming late meant that Elijah had to take care of home work, dinner, and reading time. Tired as he was, Elijah did his best, but when I came back I noticed Jefferson's homework. Among other things, he had to make a collage of pictures that would help him come up with writing ideas later. His collection of pictures had one main theme: weapons, and some cars. Of course, Elijah doesn't know where all my magazines and newspapers are, so he gave Jefferson what he could find among his stuff, magazines about cars and guns. When I saw Jefferson's collage I didn't feel good about it. After speaking with Elijah, we decided to ask Jefferson not to take that to school. School projects are so hard to deal with. First of all, we as parents try so hard not to involve ourselves, but unsuccessfully in most cases. The children either need our help or we give it anyways, because we want them to perform well. In this instance, Jefferson was left to his own devices. And I didn't like what I saw. Now let me be clear. It wasn't how well he had cut or pasted that I was concerned; it was the content. I told Jefferson that as representatives of Jesus Christ it is our responsibility to be a good example to others in all things, even when it comes to just a collage. However, I felt I needed to give him a choice as well. So I told him that in the end it was his decision whether he would leave his project home and make another when he came back from school or take that one. Now, I would feel pretty confident about the right decision being made (the right decision being listening to me) if it were Gillian or James, but Jefferson is very independent and truly has a mind of his own. When he decides on something there is nobody on earth that can change his mind. To his credit, grudgingly he agreed to make another one. (Today, after making one that was way better and had a wider variety of themes, he informed me that he was going to take them both. I left it at that. There are harder battles to fight. I think he got the message, but at the same time he wanted to show his independence. I have to be fine with that.) What do you do in cases such as these?

Today I was determined to be in control of the day and what I accomplished. I read to Charlton, I wrote in my blog, I cleaned my house spic and span, I spent time with James, I used my time efficiently, I spent time with the boys doing homework and reading while Gillian was at her choir, I fed them healthy food, I ran most of my errands, and I felt good. After we got back from the choir, I had James and Charlton play with each other, while I helped Gillian and Jefferson finish their homework. Elijah was at the temple, the younger boys were playing well and happily, the older ones were calmly doing their homework, the house was clean, and I felt at peace. I thought this was what I meant by being in control of your life, having a calm life. And then, I hear crying and screaming. From the sound of it, I knew immediately it wasn't good. I got up and I'm faced with a bloody Charlton. I almost fainted, but God preserved my wits for the moment. That doesn't mean I didn't scream and cry myself, but after a few seconds being traumatized by what I saw and heard, I realized that I wasn't helping either with the situation. Charlton had hurt his head on the floor platform by the fireplace, the only place in our house that isn't carpeted. He had a deep cut on the side of his head. I washed the spot right away, put pressure on it for a little while, and then used some peroxide to see it more clearly. I called my neighbors, who are also members of my ward, and asked them to stay with the older children so I could take Charlton to the Emergency Room. We said a prayer, and then I left.

We didn't have to wait too long at the Emergency Room, and fortunately it isn't far away from my house. Charlton was happy and enjoying all of the attention. He is just so adorable. He did have to get three staples on his head, and he behaved bravely.
While waiting on me to finish with the paper work, Charlton was looking at some magazines. He kept saying "papa" and "fish" over and over again. I stopped what I was doing and looked at him, and then started laughing. He was holding this magazine in his hand that had a picture of bearded man with two fish in his hands. My children call "papa" their grandfather, and Charlton spent three weeks with his grandfather this summer and I'm sure had great memories. So, now every time he sees someone that looks like his "papa" he goes to them and hugs them. He does this quite often. Here he is with that magazine:
Charlton is doing well, and doesn't seem to be upset or hurt. That is a great blessing. I got home around nine, and Elijah arrived right after me. When I told him about the accident and that it had happened about 7:00, he said he had been officiating in an endowment session at that time. No way for me to reach him, but the Lord had reached me. I'm grateful that I was blessed with a calm state of mind. I'm not very good in stressful situations; I've had a pretty smooth life with very few bumps on the way, and I have not learned how to handle hard situations. I'm truly thankful for the Lord's help tonight in helping me with good neighbors, good children, a quick mind, and a healthy Charlton.

As I look over my day, I realize that it is true we can't control most things in our lives. Accidents will happen, and trials will come whether we like it or not. But I also relearned another lesson that whether we can control our life fully or not, we should always be prepared and try our best. When Charlton had his accident, my house was in order, my children knew their responsibilities, I had a good rapport with my neighbors, Charlton trusted me, and Elijah was serving the Lord. Above all, I was close to the Lord myself, and heard His small, still voice giving me guidance and comfort. I'm grateful for that knowledge and blessing.