A few weeks back, right after I was getting over having both the flu and a sinus infection, I had a very trying day. Or rather my family did as a whole. And, my son will not forget that day for a long time to come. Trying days are not the end of the world for a kid. Of shouldn’t be. Tough days can be expected. It’s our role as parents to give them tools to handle those tough days. It’s, of course, our role as well to just hold their hands and be there for them.

So, here is a brief overview of what happened. My son fell down the stairs. Got injured. Was scared. Was bloodied. Needed stitches. Was scared. My family was at a stopped light and a speeding car slammed into our car pushing us out into traffic. Car was totaled. There. All that in one day.

My son was upset that so much could go wrong in one day. He noted that everything went downhill after waking up that day. He was even more upset that he couldn’t eat pizza for a week and that he could only eat jello and smoothies. But one good thing, if one can highlight a good thing in such a bad day, was that he needed his mommy. He wanted me to hold and hug him. I was to spoonfeed him. I was to hold him tight.

I just wish that my hugs could erase it all. Well, on one hand. On the other, he was ok. He came through it fine and he could see how strong he actually is. He got a sense – a taste- of how to overcome a really bad series of events. I never want my son to suffer. However, I love that he was both strong and needed me.