On the 7th day before Christmas, I want to write about an experience that demonstrated the great parenting skills Scott had for his older children. He relied heavily through his life on listening to the Spirit and then acting upon the inspiration he received. I look back at the incident and sigh with wonder how the timing and solution were so appropriate for the situation and for the future.
On Labor Day weekend of this year HeartLee, being a new college coed at BYU and wanting to explore her new found freedom planned a trip to visit a good friend attending college in Cedar City. She got the permission to take the truck (from Hayden because they share the vehicle) and made us aware of her plan. We were okay with the plan until we got a text early Sunday morning that said something like, "We are going to Las Vegas today." I do not even remember if it was in question form or just a statement because I was busy finishing a lesson I had to give in RS that day and did not look at my phone. Luckily, Scott was close to his phone always.
We were a bit shocked by the text. That was not in her previous agreed upon plan and it was Sunday morning and so when was church in the agenda, we wondered. We felt sort of stuck between a hard place and a rock as parents. If we texted back, "Okay, thanks for telling us", we are condoning the plan, giving the impression that we think it is great idea for teen-age girls to go to Las Vegas on Labor Day week-end having never been before and skipping church to do it. If we texted back, "No way, stupid plan," we get the you don't trust me dialogue and the possible recourse of her never letting us know what she is planning. As we discussed the options, we felt neither had beneficial consequences. At this point, I sort of left it up to Scott to take care of while I worked on the lesson.
He came up with a third option that I thought was a brilliant alternative. He texted back, "If that is what you have decided, I will meet you in Las Vegas for dinner." She would either text back, "Never mind, not going now" or "Okay, see you in Vegas." She choose the later and it proved to be the best opportunity for some father and daughter bonding.
I was teaching RS as stated and felt that I could not just drive up to Las Vegas and leave everyone in a pickle but nor did I want Scott to drive up alone. (If he had it would have been a different outcome to the story.) Here is where a tender mercy happened. We get a call from the father of the friend who HeartLee was visiting saying that he wanted to drive up to Las Vegas with Scott to see the girls. I think the girls put him up to that because HeartLee knew her Dad could not make it alone but I do not know for sure. I am forever grateful to the other father who sacrificed to make that drive and did most all the driving. So both fathers, left on Sunday morning to go have dinner with their girls in Las Vegas.
HeartLee's reaction to her father "crashing" in on her plans of freedom was tender. Instead of being angry or frustrated at her dad, Scott felt that she was so excited to see him and hugged on him even if it had only been a couple of weeks since she left for college. They dined at Hard Rock Cafe, went to the Coke-Cola museum and walked around a bit. Scott got some hotel rooms, so the girls would not drive back that night to Cedar City. Scott, turned in earlier and the other father drove the girls around town some more. In the morning they ate breakfast together before they parted ways to go back home.
Although, Scott came home exhausted from the overnight trip, he was so glad that he could do that and be with his daughter. We all reflect at that experience and see how our Father in Heaven loves his children enough to inspire a new plan that would work for everyone to receive benefits. I am truly going to miss, as will Hayden and HeartLee, Scott's creative and inspired parenting techniques but I am so grateful to have witnessed them in action this past Labor Day.
No comments:
Post a Comment