by Sally Matheny
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| Soothe a Child's Sour Attitude (Pixabay photo) |
Grumbles. Moans. A sour attitude seeps from my young son. My smile stays fixed while maintaining a cheery tone. Sometimes those work in soothing a child's attitude. Perhaps there is still hope for a peaceful morning.
I watch the possibility of quietude dissolve in my son’s furrowed brows.
Complaints about math begin to spew. Today, he chooses to tackle the subject—not by making an effort, but with harsh words.
Usually, my encouraging spirit holds firm during these occasional tirades.
Usually, my encouraging spirit holds firm during these occasional tirades.
Not today. This cheerleader tosses her pom-poms aside and grabs the ref’s whistle. Mentally, I call a time-out to address the heart issue.
“Why are you complaining about math before you even open your book?”
“I hate it.”
“Why?”
“Because it stinks.”
I know he’s playing the blame game. In truth, he’s angry about the time it takes to correct yesterday’s mistakes before studying a new math concept. He’d rather move on in the book so he can finish the day’s assignment, and get to the hobbies he enjoys. So I press further
.
“Why does it stink?”
“Because I’m not good at it.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.”
“Not everyone likes math. I don’t like math, either. Which should let you know how much I love you to sit here and help you with math every day! But think about people who do love math. Why would they like doing math?”
“Because they’re good at it.”
“How did they get good at it? When they first read about a new math concept, do you think they were great at it?”
“Maybe.”
“Yeah, maybe things clicked right away. Perhaps they understood the new concept because they had already mastered the steps leading up to it. Right?”
“Yeah.”
“Why do you think they were successful at solving those problems?”
Hesitant now, because he knows where this is going, he mumbles, “I guess they practiced.”
“Kind of like when you master a level on your video game. At first, you get frustrated. But you keep at it until you figure out the solution, how to advance to the next level, and then how to win. Right?”
“I guess.”
“Look. I don’t like math. You don’t like math. We’d both rather do something else. But, it’s something we need to practice and master so we can move to the next level. Some of the skills we learn, we may use every day. Other concepts we may never use.
The thing is, we don’t know which skills we will need in the future and which ones we won’t need. We do know we have to take tests on these things in order to advance to the next level, the next grade, and on to graduation.
We may make plans for our futures but we don’t know with absolute certainty what God has in mind for us five, ten, or twenty years from now. We need to learn what is required of us at this moment and give our best. Besides these math problems teach us life skills.”
