Taking my son to his first carnival seemed like such a good idea. It was a Saturday afternoon and I thought the crisp autumn air would do us both good. He was only about 2 1/2 and I couldn't wait to take pictures of him on his first ride. I placed him in his stroller and we walked through the park. I could see the excitement on his face. Then we came upon the Crazy Bus.
I thought it was a kiddie ride that went back and forth, so when my son ran to get on it, I let him. The ride started, and it did go back and forth...and then it went up, up, up! My child was 30 feet in the air with his little head looking out of the big OPEN window at me. He had nothing more than a thin little strap on his waist holding him in place. In that moment I panicked!
What kind of mother was I - how could I allow my little baby to go on that dangerous ride all by himself? What if he stood up? As his little head popped out of the open window and he looked way down at me, I loudly said, ever so calmly, "stay sitting down, baby, don't stand up". I began to pray and continued praying the whole time the ride was in motion. It seemed to last an eternity! I wanted to scream, "Just stop the ride and bring him down!" But I did not want my son to see me panic, so I remained calm (on the outside).
When he got off the ride he had a BIG smile on his face and ran towards me. Emotionally exhausted, I scooped him up, secured him in his stroller and headed straight for the car.
God taught me a valuable lesson that day. My child is in God's hands. There was nothing I could do while he was looking down at me from the Crazy Bus -- I had lost control. And it's in those moments that I have to trust God to take care of my children.
How do you react when you feel "out of control"?
