Lessons from the YMCA

A few things I’ve learned from working with kids:

-Advertising works:
-Yogurt is just so much cooler in a tube than in a cup.
-Regular Cheez-its getting boring? Reduce the size and call them “Grips”.
-Fruit snacks must come in 100 different character shapes.
-Ritz crackers and little discs of cheese and ham are a great meal, but only if you call them “Lunchables.” Since no kid likes crust, they make “Uncrustables,” little round packaged PB&J sandwiches with no crust. I’m curious to see what other “-ables” they’ll be coming out with.

-Kids’ emotions are so exaggerated: If something is funny, kids laugh hysterically; if they get hurt, they need to go to the emergency room (but somehow, a band-aid makes it all better); if they’re happy, they bounce around. Isn’t it funny how as you grow up, you subconsciously learn to neutralize your emotions? What if we all responded like kids?!

-It’s important to have realistic expectations. It’s OK that my kindergartners have to go to the bathroom every 10 minutes. It’s normal that they can’t sit still for more than 30.

-When I’m tempted to lose my patience, I think about how much patience God has with me. I mess up everyday, but he patiently and lovingly forgives me and sets me back on the right path.

-Similarly, I’m learning to have “new mercy every morning” (Lamentations 3:23). Every once in a while, I leave work feeling completely defeated. When the kids are just plain awful and nothing goes as planned, when I have to take a group of kids to the bathroom every 5 minutes or clean up 20 spills during lunch, I feel like giving up. But thankfully, each day provides the opportunity to start fresh with my kids, a chance to rely on God for patience and unconditional love instead of depending on my own strength. I’m glad God has new mercy for me today rather than holding a grudge based on the way I failed him yesterday.