Our family has recently started praying the Rosary together on Sundays. Our first attempt was fantastic. Our second attempt…well, it was an attempt.
From the very beginning, our two older ones were staring into space. I kindly asked them to pray along. They obeyed…for half a prayer.
My eldest struggled to find a comfortable position to sit with her giant plush pillow she got on her birthday. After several failed suggestions, I asked her to put the plush pillow away. She listened but decided to make a long pit stop to the bathroom. All the while, my 7-year-old son was dozing off.
We had only gotten past the first few prayers and I felt like I was going to lose my mind. All I could think about was threatening to take away their video game time.
I was so ready to make a scene as soon as Aurora came back from her mini-vacation from the bathroom. When she did come back, a tiny voice told me to wait till after the rosary and then let them have it.
Not a bad idea. I’ll still get the glorious moment I’ve been dreaming up these last 2 Hail Marys.
Then during the 1st Mystery, I thought to myself, “but seriously, how do I get them to listen and pray properly?” Ideas began to pop up in my head. “I guess if I put up an altar and candles, they’ll have something to look at besides their 3 year old sister doing headstands on the couch.” “We coulda also kneel next time to keep them from experimenting with every possible resting position known to man.”
Once my intial frustration was gone, I realized something. Had I gone with my original plan, I might have ruined family prayer time for my kids. But because I listened to the small voice in my head “to just wait”, better ideas came to mind…way better ideas.
“Patience is the companion of wisdom,” said St. Augustine. This is exactly what happened to me. It takes a calm and intentional mind to know what to do. It takes patience to wait for the right moment to do it. Or put another way, quick and emotional decisions are unwise and stupid decisions.
Your kids are going to mess up. They’re going to make mistakes. They’re going to disappoint you. As a father, your children deserve wise direction, not rash discipline.
So the next time they frustrate you, take a step back, give your emotions time to settle, pray, and be the wise father your children need.
