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How My Son Learned A Very Important Life Lesson
I was humiliated when I got the phone call from my grandmother….
I questioned my 7 years of parenting and my ability to handle the situation. I questioned the knowledge I held of the many parenting books I’ve read. I questioned myself where I went wrong…. I know parents mess up, and I do all the time, but did I mess up this bad?
You’re probably wondering what in the world I’m talking about.
My seven-year old spent the day with my grandparents while on spring break from school. My sweet Papa had to go to a round of Chemo so Hunter, my son, went along with them. Before they went to the doctor, they stopped and got drinks for everyone since Papa would be in there a couple hours. I never thought I’d be teaching my son a very important life lesson while he’s on this trip.
While sitting in the car with my grandmother, Hunter pulls out a pack of Starburst. I was on the phone and I could hear the conversation. She asked him where he got those. He didn’t answer. She asked if Papa paid for them. Hunter said no. My heart fell to the floor.
My sweet, precious, innocent child who rarely gets in trouble – just stole something. I wanted to cry.
I couldn’t believe my ears!!! The many, many times we’ve talked to him about stealing and taking stuff that wasn’t his – he still took the Starburst. I was mortified, humiliated, and brokenhearted.
I talked with him on the phone and told him he was to go back in the store, apologize, and pay out of his own pocket for the Starburst.
He understood and he knew the disappointment in my voice.
We talked a while about the 10 commandments and how God ordered “thou shalt not steal” just as “thou shalt not kill”. We talked about how those are HIS rules and we must abide by them. We also talked about how Jesus, the innocent most perfect being to ever walk this Earth was crucified next to two thieves. We talked about how shameful that was.
At the end, he realized he made a bad decision and returned to the store to return the candy and to apologize to the clerk.
After seeing his reaction and his feelings after our discussion I didn’t feel as horrible about the situation. But I explained to him next time he would be getting a whooping because this was his one and only warning.
I felt somewhat relieved to hear the humiliation in his voice, and not to my satisfaction of him being humiliated, that hurts me, but that he had remorse.
He truly felt bad for stealing, even something as a $1 pack of Starburst. He didn’t want them. He realized those were not his because he didn’t purchase them and he no longer found them appealing.
This ensured me that I handled the situation a right way. That was my goal. Not to humiliate him, not to make him feel inferior, but to make him feel remorse, true remorse – and he did.
Will he try to take something again? I can’t answer that with 100% certainty, but most likely not. I can guarantee you he will think twice about it before he does.
Hopefully I will never get that humiliating call again; however, I am thankful that I had a chance to teach Hunter about this life lesson!
I know children are not perfect, and I don’t expect them to be. I am certainly not a perfect parent, I fail my child every day. But, I am blessed to have a chance to take a bad situation and turn it into a learning experience & life lesson for my son.
Have you ever been in a similar situation with your children? If so, leave your story in the comments! I’d love to hear how you dealt with them.
That is precious! Made me want to cry. I love it when they UNDERSTAND what we’re saying…I love that he realized it was wrong. THAT’S when you know you did something right!!! Sweet boy…
Yes! I was thankful for the opportunity to teach him something; even though at first I was ashamed!