By Eugene Johnson/The Torch
eugenejohnson@lcctorch.com
More students at Lane means more cars on I-5, overcrowded buses and longer lines for financial aid, mochas and cash at the ATM. It can be a rather frustrating way to start your day.
As a student and parent, it can be doubly frustrating. I’m getting two people to class on time, my son and I. We all know that sometimes children can create unexpected challenges to getting our day started. And how we respond to those challenges can teach our kids either good or bad habits. I’ve learned that I’m teaching my son how to handle his frustration by my example. I’m sure, like me, you want to teach them good ways to respond.
For example, on the first day of school, I’d managed to get everyone fed, dressed, out the door and to the bus stop when my 3-year-old son, Ezra, announced he needed to use the potty.
I could have handled this in a number of ways. I could have gotten angry because the bus stop, let alone the bus, doesn’t come equipped with a bathroom. But that would have been silly. I couldn’t get upset with my son for preferring to use his home throne. And I couldn’t insist that he wait and use the potty at school. I mean, come on, does anybody really like to use a public toilet? Instead of getting angry, I just smiled and hurried home, telling myself at least he didn’t tell me after it was too late.
It is how we respond to different events that teach our children how they should react. They will mimic every little micro-tantrum we throw, and then we’ll wonder where they learned to act that way. By controlling our reaction and staying calm, we’ll keep our child calm, too, and everyone will be able to cope with the situation.
Back at the bus stop, I just laughed and told myself, “You wanted to drop your first class, anyway.” Obviously, we needed more time in the morning to deal with last-minute surprises, and making an 8 a.m. is unreasonable.
Ezra and I will be taking that bus three times a week, and staying calm in that moment has set the tone for the rest of the year.
In the end, we managed to get to preschool on time, and I got an extra hour before my next class started.
At the end of the day, my son was tired and happy, and said he had a great first day back to school. And hearing him say that made my day.
