The Detour Diary

As parents, we often find ourselves giving Jack reminders about making good decisions. And as a 7-year-old, however, Jack often likes to test the limits despite our advice. Sometimes the best way for us to let him learn is to give him a reminder once and then just stand back, let him try what it is he wants to do and let him fail (obviously assuming his safety isn’t at risk)! Better for him to learn how to fail now then at 18 years old, right? I hope so.

Anyway, as I’ve already mentioned, on the Great Ocean Road, we were constantly stopping to explore different beaches and waterfalls and go on hikes. One day we had wandered out to a secluded spot called Johanna Beach. It was beautiful, but the waves were something fierce! It was really fun to watch them come crashing in.

Here’s a pictoral timeline that basically shows exactly how this went down…

Here we’re having a sweet mother/son moment…

Me: “Wow, look at those waves. They’re huge! I certainly wouldn’t want to be swimming right now!”

Jack: “Those waves mom? Those right there? They’re not that big. And I bet I’m fast enough to outrun them.”

Me: “Well, I know you’re fast, but I certainly don’t think that sounds like a good idea. And remember that’s your only pair of dry shoes.”

Jack: “What if I just get a little bit closer.”

Me: “I wouldn’t push my luck if I were you, but it’s your choice.”

Jack: “Look! I definitely won’t get wet standing here.”

Jack: “Woohoo, that was a close one!! Look mom, the waves are chasing me. This is fun!!”

Me: Thinking, but keeping my mouth shut at this point…this is sooo not going to end well.

At this point, I stopped to take a quick video of him tempting fate with his wave racing. And of course what I managed to catch was him losing the battle to Mother Nature. I threw down my phone as soon as he went in because I was getting ready to go in after him! Luckily he was able to quickly scramble out on his own, but was none too happy about the soggy end result.

And that, kids, is your public service announcement for the day on why every now and then it’s a good idea to actually listen to mom and dad.

Fast forward to the next day where he was doing the same thing, but keeping a much safer distance. Lesson learned? Maybe…only time will tell!