A Prayer, Starting School, & Remembering

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School looks different now. Sports look different. Our mudroom looks different as masks hang alongside our kids’ backpacks.

As anxiety and worry usually accompany the unfamiliar, they grew in my daughter’s mind the morning school started after being closed for so long.

We talked about how she was feeling.

I told her to take some deep breaths to calm her down.

I shared that I felt nervous going back to school when I was her age and that it was normal to feel that way. She was glad to know she wasn’t alone.

I told her she was strong and could do it.

And, then we prayed together.

After that, we sat squeezed together in my sunroom chair & my daughter said, “Mommy, instead of having 20 butterflies, I only have 3.” (:

There’s no easy fix when our kids feel this way, and some children need different responses than others, but if our kids are experiencing some anxiety or worry, those are a few tools that can help.

That morning, words came to mind by Sissy Goff, Christian author of “Raising Worry-Free Girls” and Counselor:
“Avoidance strengthens anxiety. She’s just going to have to do that scary thing. When you make all the scary things go away, it sends a message to her that she can’t handle them. Rescuing communicates that she needs rescuing.”

My daughter ended up having a good day at school and the next morning she was stronger, excited for school, and had a great day. I think doing the “scary thing” made her that much stronger – for her to see, for herself, that she could do it.

What a gift that we get to be right by our kiddos’ sides as they walk through the challenges and triumphs in their lives – the beauty of parenting. ❤️

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