Fighting Through

Today I sent my daughter to musical theater class with a hurt foot. Bad Mommy? Perhaps. But the foot wasn't broken, it just hurt. And I figured, even if she couldn't dance, she could sing. And watch the dancing to help her for next time.
 
Part of my decision was in the heat of the moment--we were scheduled to go, it was time to go, we were going. But as I thought about it after I dropped her, I realized it was actually what I try to teach my kids every day, both by word and by example. There are absolutely circumstances that sideline us--illness, failure, loss. But there are also circumstances that, while they THREATEN to sideline us, are not as dire. It is those circumstances that teach us about fighting through. And fighting through is probably one of the most important life skills a person can have. Fighting through helps us face rejection when we are looking for work, or frustration when we don't do well on the test we studied so hard for. Fighting through gets us through the day when we wake up with aches and pains and just want to stay in bed. Fighting through keeps us strong even when people try to take away our confidence. It's not always possible to fight through the challenges, but when we can, we are reminded that we are stronger than we think, and we keep from missing out on some great things.
 
My daughter's foot may not be better, but I see a kid who is stronger now than she was before I dropped her at class. And I really do think that's because she fought through it (and, of course, got to sing in the process).