I got this

By Jeremy Gulley

We didn’t want him to go with us. Not because we don’t like him, but the idea of taking a three year old, who has zero experience hiking and can be . . . um . . . difficult, on a rocky, hilly, sometimes dangerous hike didn’t seem like a good idea.

On Thanksgiving afternoon, however, Anderson, my nephew, joined my family for his first hike. It would be a short hike, I thought, anticipating turning back after 10 feet or so.

Luckily, positive signs that things would work out came quickly. The first: Anderson did not want to be carried. He would walk on his own, thank you very much. Unfortunately, because he was slower, due to his shorter legs, he fell back and my older son stayed with him.

When we couldn’t see them any longer, we stopped to wait. We were worried, for good reason. He had never hiked, he wasn’t the best communicator, and my son, though conscientious and patient, is only 12.

Those of us waiting discussed turning back, worried that Anderson had tired out.

It didn’t take long for them to catch up, however, and when they were within earshot, their first words surprised us. “Do you have any acorns that aren’t broken?” yelled my son. “What?” I called back, apparently not hearing correctly. “We’re looking for unbroken acorns for Anderson and can’t find any. Do you see any?”

As they approached, we began looking for acorns. Finding a few unbroken examples, and learning that an unsuccessful acorn search, not weariness caused their delay, our hopes were lifted.

What came next didn’t just lift my spirits, however, it changed my perspective.

Faced with a steep, rocky climb, I thought it would be better if I carried Anderson. He would have none of that, though. When I asked if he wanted me to carry him up the rocks he confidently looked at me and said, “No, I got this.”

No, I got this? Really? The kid who I was afraid would turn back after 10 feet looked at a rocky incline and said, “No, I got this.”

And he did.

And I’m an idiot.

I think I know people. I think I do them service when I try to talk them out of things, or into things that I think are best, but who am I to say anything?

People need the chance to surprise us.

People need the chance to look at the rocks and say “No, I got this.”

My expectations of Anderson were made up entirely of unrelated events. He hadn’t hiked before, so why was I hesitant to give him a chance? It was because I was projecting an outcome that I had no business projecting.

Or maybe I was afraid that he would ruin my experience. Here again, he deserved the chance to prove me wrong, but I was hesitant to offer the chance.

Next time, however, when I have to choose whether or not to give someone a chance, I’ll know what to say.

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Posted by admin on Dec 1 2010. Filed under Jeremy Gulley, Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry