Monkey Bars and Chimney Tops

I was sure that it was a bad idea for John to hike to the top of a mountain, the last part of which involved scaling bare rock without ropes. It sounded dangerous and my instinct was to pull out all the stops to plead with him not to do it. My pride told me to fight, fight, fight. I felt responsible for his safety. If I let up, and something bad happened, it would be my fault. 

Fortunately, in the midst of my fuming and scheming, I had a moment of humility, and remembered to pray. I said to God, "I don't know it all. I can't control it all. Please give me wisdom." 

As the Lord spoke to my heart, the fog of my brain cleared, and I remembered way back in elementary school when I used to walk the monkey bars. Most kids would crawl across, but that was too boring for me. I have always had excellent balance, so for me, walking across the top, no hands, was the only way to go. I'm sure this was terrifying to the recess guard, who reported it to my teachers, who reported it to my parents. I was commanded to stop. 

I recently read an article explaining the importance of letting kids take risks because it is important for their psychological and physical development. Humph. If only my parents had let me continue walking the monkey bars, where would I be now? Olympic athlete? President of a corporation? Ok, maybe not. But we will never know. 

But at least this helped me to loosen up a bit on my husband. I decided to let him take a risk. I even decided to go on the hike with him. Gasp. And when we got to the rock climbing part, I didn't scream. Amazingly, he made a wise decision without my assistance, and stopped short of the steepest and most treacherous part of the climb. 

Also, I loved this hike. It was a 1,400 foot ascent in 2 miles, and I got a taste of hikers euphoria. I was practically skipping on the way down. 

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight."

Proverbs 3:5-6