Dare You to Move

The Polar Plunge and the Ice-Water Challenge were hard to miss if you’re on any form of social media.  Even celebrities participated and aired their water torture on television.  So when one of my son’s friends challenged Trey to do the Polar Plunge, Trey was more than happy to participate.  However, when one of the friends that Trey challenged then challenged me, I was not so quick to oblige. 

It’s true that I’m scared of what’s in the Clinch River; the water is murky and the bed is slimy.  Plus I’ve always had the fear of something coming up from below, unseen, and “getting” me.  It’s irrational, like my fear of flying, but it’s a fear I cannot control nonetheless.

Beyond this fear, however, I couldn’t help but wonder how submerging myself in cold water and posting it on social media would really DO anything.  So I decided not to do it.  I decided to donate to the charity of my choice instead.  I went down to the river, with my son videoing, and made my announcement to post on social media. 

The response I got stunned me—not from those on social media, but from my 8 year old son:  “You took the easy way out!” 

He was disappointed in me!  I had bucked the trend, I had opted to DO something, and he was disappointed in me! 

I felt like I had been sucker-punched.  I’m supposed to be his role model, and I had let him down.  But it wasn’t because I didn’t do the Polar Plunge.  It was because he didn’t get it, that he thought me getting into the icy water took more courage and effort than doing something good, something tangible for someone else.   I had failed in instilling the value of charity in my own child.

I had to DO something:  that afternoon, Trey and I went shopping.  As I filled the cart with toothbrushes, toothpaste, soap, T-shirts, all items the Crisis Center for Women in Lenoir City, TN needs, he asked, “Why do they need all this?” 

It’s hard to admit to your child that there are such things as monsters, except they don’t lurk in our closets and under our beds—that the real monsters are in our everyday reality and, for some, in their everyday lives.  But if I wanted him to feel compassion for those who are sick, hurt, hopeless, in need, or in danger, he had to know of their existence. 

I can’t say that what we did that one day was a life-altering experience for Trey.  But it was for me.  In acknowledging the monsters, I must also shine the light on all the angels that are out there as well.  I need to be the role model I want my children to one day be.  I will DO more. 

I Dare You to Move…and DO.

Rock the [Cache] Box

Ok, yeah, I know it’s really “Rock the Casbah,” but as a kid, I was certain the song was saying “rock the cash box, rock the cash box.”  It wasn’t until I was in my 20s that my husband informed me of the real lyrics.  But what’s really important here is that every time I hear that song, I’m reminded of my childhood, days spent playing outside in my backyard or running around the neighborhood. 

I certainly wasn’t a tom-boy, and I had/have no skills in sports, yet playing outside was just what we did as kids.  Making goulash with a discarded pot and “ingredients” found in my backyard was one of my favorite pastimes, along with digging holes in the backyard and covering them with sticks and leaves to trap “intruders” I was sure were coming into my yard at night.  Even on days when it was raining, I’d put on my raingear and play in the rain, or my mom would back the car out of the carport and I’d roller skate.  As I got older, I’d ride my bike around the neighborhood. 

I can’t imagine my kids riding their bikes around our neighborhood.  The world and neighborhoods just aren’t the same as they were 30 years ago.  Even still, my husband and I have worked hard to provide an accommodating and entertaining backyard for our children:  a swimming pool, swing-set, Power-Wheels, bikes, basketball goal, river to fish in, woods to play in, and plenty of yard to run and kick/hit/catch a ball in.

But the other day when I came home from work, my three boys met me at the door whining, “Ms. Wendy made us go outside and play.” 

I’m sorry—what?!? 

Sadly, the great outdoors and all the amenities we’ve provided just can’t compete with the Xbox and Minecraft. 

I weighed my options.  I could go to the extreme and remove the glowing, hypnotic Xbox from the house, I could banish the kids against their will to the outdoors, or I could find another outlet for them.  And that’s when I came across Geocaching—my perfect solution.

James David's & Jacob's victory pose.

Geocaching has everything I was looking for—the outdoors, adventure, critical thinking, and fun; plus, it’s something we can do together as a family and it’s inexpensive. 

The activity itself doesn’t cost anything, except the price of gas and perhaps a trinket (if it’s a large cache with items and you want to take an item, you must leave an item in its place).  But you do need an app to locate the caches.  Though there are several cheaper options available, I went ahead and bought the official geocaching app for a whopping $10.00.  I figured if it worked out, then it’d be a great one-time investment.  And so far, it has been.

Our first geocache find! 

Any time I ask the kids if they want to go geocaching, they are always up for it.  For them, it’s a real-life treasure-hunt; for me, it’s memories in the making.