JUMPING OF BRIDGES

Remember when your mother asked, “Would you jump off a bridge if your friends did?” Well, the irony of that question was that you had already jumped off the bridge, or she wouldn’t be asking the question.  Looking back at all the stupid, reckless stuff I did with friends makes me smile, mostly because I survived it and also because I can hear my mother’s voice again (a voice that speaks beyond her existence).

I remember saying those exact words to my son after he got into some foolishness. But the craziest thing about that conversation was that I waited for him to answer with the correct response of no, just like my mother did with me. When I look at my eleven-year-old grandson, who can’t wait to be a teenager, I wonder if my son will ever ask his son that insane question. If he should ask, I hope he hears my voice and recalls the times I asked him the same thing, and I hope it makes him smile.

The decision to jump or not is a rite of passage that most kids will have to make. What kid hasn’t done something stupid, foolish, or dangerous at the urging of a friend? That’s precisely why parents stay up at night until they hear their kids come home. That’s why mothers pray, and fathers sound like the rumbling of a coming storm when they tell their children to do something. That’s why they stay up at night until they hear the front door open and the patter of their kids' feet sneaking into the house.

When I look back at the times I jumped off bridges, I remember them fondly, but honestly, some of those experiences had negative consequences. So, although jumping off bridges with friends can be adventurous and exciting, that one bad choice can adversely impact one’s future. The only advice I can give to any parent of young kids today is to pray for them daily and speak to them about the times you jumped off bridges with your friends, including the good and bad outcomes of those choices. Let them know that their life will be a series of choices that will become more complex as they grow older, and how important it is for them to make wise choices.