Like a lot of parents, I experienced a mixture of excitement and apprehension sending the kids off to begin a new school year this week. While it is natural to worry a bit, its also important to step back and let the young people in your life struggle a bit with their challenges in and out of the classroom.
Which reminds me of a story...
Once there was a teenage girl who absolutely loved animals and she became a volunteer at an animal rescue center. She was very responsible and everyone appreciated the enthusiastic help she provided.
In the center was an incubator for bird eggs that had been abandoned by the mother or had fallen out the nest. For the past week there had been a large specimen in the incubator that had captured the girl's fascination.
What was the bird going to look like when it hatched? On this particular day she noticed the thin, flexible egg shell popping up slightly in one spot and then another-the baby bird was trying to peck his way out!
Excited, she took out her pocket knife and was going to carefully help her little bird friend escape from the egg until a voice behind cried out STOP! It was the director of the animal rescue center and she said, "thank goodness I caught you before its too late. I know you meant well, but that bird needs to struggle before it hatches or it won't be strong enough to survive afterward."
Happily the baby bird pecked his way out of the egg two days later and went on to be strong and healthy.
This story and others can be found in my e-book Hypnotic Storytelling, available at Amazon and other online booksellers.
P.S. If you or a younger person in your life could use some help, please feel free to connect with me by calling (732) 714-7040.