What does cleaning up crayons have to do with growing stronger?
My grandsons scattered crayons all over the floor as they colored, ran off and left the mess.
“Come on over and clean up this mess you made and put the crayons back,” I shouted at them so they could hear.
They protested.
“Come on, it makes you strong to clean up your own messes. So come over here and get strong by taking responsibility to clean up your mess.”
They ran to the mess of crayons all over the floor and started putting them away.
As I stood and watched them, I said, “Good job. You’re getting stronger because you’re cleaning up the mess you made.”
John looked up at me as he put some crayons in the box, “I like this Grandma.”
I too love the understanding that came to me at that moment. We get stronger by cleaning up our own messes. When someone cleans them up for us, they rob us of the strength we gain from cleaning them up ourselves.
So the next time you have to clean up one of your messes, remember that it makes you stronger.
And do others a favor, let them get stronger by taking personal responsibility to clean up their own messes.