A few years ago (almost four, to be exact) I was visiting
Emma, Dwight, and Essie, who were living on Camp Pendleton. It was during a time they were having wildfires—some of which were burning on Camp Pendleton.
You could see the fires from the front yard of their house
and each day we wondered if they would get close enough for us to have to be
evacuated. At around 1 a.m. one morning we stopped wondering because over the
loud speakers positioned throughout the base, a voice came on telling
us we needed to evacuate immediately.
Waking up to the voice over the loudspeaker was coupled with
the dense smoke that was starting to overtake the area, so as quickly as
possible, we gathered a few things for ourselves, a few more things for
week-old Essie, called some good great friends who lived out of range of
the fires, and left.
We didn’t complain about being wakened from a sound sleep.
We didn’t debate the wisdom of the choice being made for us. In fact, we were
thankful—very thankful—for the diligence of those watching the fires 24/7 in an
effort to keep us all safe. We were thankful they didn’t hesitate to ‘disturb’
us—that they did what they knew was in our best interest regardless of the time
of day (or night) and without worrying about how we might react.
As parents there are times we need to be that voice coming
over the loud speaker for our children. We need to step in and say or do
whatever is necessary to keep our kids safe. Even if it makes us unpopular.
Even if it makes them mad. Even if it isn’t easy or convenient. Even if it’s
downright hard.
As a parent it is your job to keep your kids from ignoring
the warnings to get away from the fires of bad choices that can ruin or even
claim their lives. As a parent it is your job to expect certain behaviors from
your children no matter what. As a parent it is your job to be vigilant in
watching for dangers and warning signs of things that can adversely affect your
child and keep them from growing into the amazing and wonderful people they
are.
Parents don’t be afraid to be the voice that comes over the
loud speaker. Trust me, even if it doesn’t make you the coolest mom or dad of
the month, or your kids insist you’ve ruined their life, it’s worth it. And guess what else? Someday they will actually thank you for it.
Love,
Momma D
Copyright 2017 Darla Noble. No part of this can be used or copied without permission from the author.
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