Saturday, June 9, 2012

The Sunday Post ~ Fear of the Water

I used to think that I didn't want my son to be afraid to the water. That was a month ago. But after watching him run headlong towards deep water with no fear of jumping in, despite an inability to swim, I've completely changed my mind.

Yesterday, he fell in the baby pool. I was Right there when he tripped and his head went under just long enough to scare him. Suddenly, the fearlessness was gone and he didn't want to be in the pool anymore. Since then, he's garnered a healthy respect, if not blatant fear, of the water. I'm ok with this.

No fear of the water is a bad thing. Running headlong into deep water drop is a bad thing. I read a book last year, a true story, in which the one and a half year old (that's Billy's age!) wandered off to investigate a duck pond and drowned. Yes, a fear of the water is good.

Don't get me wrong, I want him to love the water- later- when he learns how to swim. And, you know, doesn't try to dive into the deep end because he knows it's over his head.

But now? I'm ok if the deepest he wants to get is on the first step and no further. Yep, I'm ok with this.

(Sorry for rambling or being incoherent- it's hard to write with a one-year-old attempting to rewrite your post while you're writing it!)

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