My grandson visited a couple weeks ago on his Fall break from school. He is five-years-old and very active. We did all sorts of things together—cooking, planting, played games, took walks, explored the desert, and read books. But, one of my favorite times was the day we went to the park only to find it overrun by monsters.
Jimmy and I were the only humans at the park, and I thought it would be a fun time of play. That’s how it started out, with him running to the play set and going down the slides. Then, as Jimmy raced along the sidewalk, he came to a screeching halt, his little body frozen.
He glanced back, and whispered, “Grandma, stop, there’s monsters.” I could hear the caution in his voice, so I stopped although the monsters were invisible to me.
“What kind are they?” I asked.
“It’s a fire monster.” This very active boy is still frozen in place.
“What are we going to do?” I took a step toward him.
He tilted his head to the side and studied the situation. “Water. We need water.” He looked around the park and then stared at the area in the back with a covered picnic table and a grill. “Back there. Follow me.”
And, he took off running, calling over his shoulder for me to hurry because the monster was getting close. I followed him and watched as he grabbed up some water in an invisible-to-me container and fearlessly raced toward the monster and doused it before going back for more. In no time, the fire monster was defeated.
That wasn’t the end. There were more monsters, each one with different capabilities. Every time, Jimmy had to think about how to defeat that monster and what would work. These were not scientific deductions that might work in real life, but I loved his thought process.
So, why didn’t I just tell him there were no such things as monsters? Because play is important, as is using your imagination. These monsters were almost as real to him as if they had been right there, but he learned to think through the scariness and figure out how to defeat them. That is a real world skill that will stand him in good stead throughout life.
Taking the time to think how to rid ourselves of monsters—in any form of negativity, physical or mental—is valuable. We can learn from this five-year-old about how to freeze in place and consider the situation. How to see what will work to change the outcome without harm to anyone. And, in doing so, we can build our own confidence and protect ourselves.
Instead of screaming and running from the things in life that scare us, maybe we should take the time to pray and study them. What does God want us to learn from this person or this situation? Is this really the threat we perceive? Perhaps throwing prayer on the situation is exactly what we need to defuse it and see everything through the lens of God’s love and grace.
The next time we’re around a child who is afraid of the monsters, let’s take the time to encourage them to look at the situation and see what can be done. Don’t tell them what to do, let them figure it out, maybe with some help from us. Then, while they’re fighting their monsters, we can pray about our own and what God wants us to do.
And [David] said: “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; The God of my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, My stronghold and my refuge; My Savior, You save me from violence. I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies. 2 Samuel 22:2-4 (NKJV)
