Finding Sacred in the Ordinary: Children of the Sea
Recently, my daughter has gotten very wary of water. Bathtime is a five minute screaming ordeal. Swimming is out of the question. The idea of it fascinates her but the reality is far from pleasant. If she was one of the children in this picture, it would be the smallest child that is on the back of their sibling. Except she would be screaming and clinging on for dear life, trying to avoid any contact with the water at all.
I know this is simply a phase, and eventually she will grow out of it, but I am trying to take the opportunity to understand her fear and wariness while she is in it. It is so easy, with our children, to become frustrated by their fears and worries, knowing that these things will not hurt them and that their fears are truly irrational. Even if they are irrational, the fears are real. Her emotions are real, and it is my job as a mother not to let them pass by, but to enter into them with her. As I have been pondering how to be present for my daughter, I came across this verse:
“When you pass through the waters I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you” - Isaiah 43:2
Aha! There it is. Our Lord has done everything for us first. Whenever we are unsure of our next move, Christ has the answer and shows us the way. I believe one of the core aspects of parenting is presence and accompaniment, and God reveals both to us in this verse. Here, He offers us the promise of His presence and invites us to trust Him completely, no matter the situation.
“When you pass through the waters I will be with you.” The first half of this verse speaks of presence. In my daughter's case, I can be with her when she takes a bath or when we go swimming. There is not a moment when she has to face her emotions alone, whether they are filled with joy or fear. If we, as parents, do not abandon our children in their moments of need, how much more is that true of God? His presence is constant and unending, walking beside us through whatever waters we must pass.
“and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you.” The second half of this verse speaks of accompaniment. As parents, we have the privilege of walking alongside our children through experiences we have often faced ourselves. We gently remind them that while their emotions may feel overwhelming, they will not overcome them. Life will bring frightening moments, but we can accompany our children through them, showing them that we, too, have passed through the rivers and emerged safely on the other side.
These children playing in the sea give me hope that one day my daughter, too, will no longer fear the water but will delight in it once again. Until then, I will keep walking with her through her fears and worries. I hope to show her that some fears are not meant to be avoided, but something to walk into, discovering, with time, that they were never quite as frightening as they first seemed.
