Jim took his family on an impromptu getaway to an area quite tropical. 2 adults and 4 children spanning grade school to high school. When in Rome, which is nowhere close to where they traveled, you take the family snorkeling along a reef. When you’re snorkeling along a reef you encounter all sorts of sea life. It’s beautiful, so says Jim. I’ve seen pictures on the internet and he’s right I think. When one is snorkeling along a reef with one’s children, one keeps a boat nearby in case one decides one has had enough. It also helps in getting out to the area you wish to snorkel. As Jim and his cohort immerse themselves in the beauty below they begin to sense, quite literally, they have company. Though hard to see, jellyfish are easy to feel. More so when they sting you. Which is what they did this day to Jim and his children. These jellyfish were rather dainty with a similarly dainty bite. Which was tolerable for a bit until it no longer was. At this point the children are climbing into the boat. Jim chose to stay and take in the aquatic wonderland before his oversized goggles. The jellyfish were in the same mood. Jim continued to weave, somewhat successfully, around them with the occasional sting to ensure a multi-sensorial experience.
I suppose the beauty was worth it. And Jim didn’t have a choice. If he wanted the beauty he had to accept the pain. His children chose to let the pain define their experience. We’ll give them a pass. I’m not sure I would have stayed in, myself. But their beauty was short-lived as a result.
So what shall you and I choose, then?
Will we let our pain thwart our beauty?
Will we climb in the boat or continue to snorkel?
