Do-Over

It was with interest that I read the paper this morning about our Commander-in-Chief's do-over. Actually I enjoyed the first swearing in...it reminded me of a wedding day. There the bride and groom are reciting their vows and they inevitably stumble. Symbolic of the humanness, the ability to stop and start over. So when I watched President Obama stumble over his oath and Chief Justice Robert's stumble over his words...I felt connected in a human way. When President Obama leaned forward to start over, I was moved by that common human response.

We need more do-overs. Especially parents. When I look back at all my starts and stops, all my embarrassing moments, all my stupid mistakes...I realize, the most personal growths occurred when I gave myself a do-over. When I didn't waste time flogging my emotional self but picked myself up and started again. Failures are steps forward, if you get the message. The issue is that most people carry their failures with them, so the pile gets bigger and the weight intolerable. So, we give up. But if you embraced the message of all those moments and put them down, you will move forward with a lighter step. Our children are individuals, not clones. When the gene pool mixes and the baby arrives, they come with a different outlook and finding a way to raise them perfectly is impossible. But finding a way to raise them with do-overs is possible.

The biggest gift that President Obama gave to his children was demonstrating that a do-over is OK. For me...if my President gets a do-over than it is only fair that I get one too!