Pouch!

This book has become a favorite of Ann's over the last couple of days (and we've read it I don't know how many times...and we usually read it at least 5-6 times in a row before I manage to convince her to have me read her another book).  It is a cute story though.  It's about a young kangaroo that recently poked his head out of his mother's pouch and discovered this whole new world around him.  He soon wants to go hop around.  So he hops away from his mother and encounters a bee.  Scared, he exclaims "Pouch!" and hops back into the safety of his mother's pouch.  But he eventually wants to hop again, and each time he goes a little further away, and each time encounters another new animal and hops back to his mother.  Eventually he runs into another kangaroo.  They both call out "Pouch!", and then realize, "wait, you were afraid of me too?".  They laugh and become friends, hopping happily around together.  In the end, their mothers ask if they want the pouch, to which they reply, "no thanks".

Since I've pretty much memorized the story, I've started to think more about it.  In a way, the story reminds me of a lesson taught by Elder Larry Y. Wilson of the Quorum of the Seventy in this past April's General Conference of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  In his talk, Elder Wilson comments:

"Our children are in our homes for a limited time.  If we wait until they walk out the door to turn over to them the reins of their moral agency, we have waited too long...Wise parents prepare their children to get along without them.  They provide opportunities for growth as children acquire the spiritual maturity to exercise their agency properly.  And yes, this means children will sometimes make mistakes and learn from them."  (You can find the whole talk here)

I thought about how in Ann's story, the mother kangaroo is willing to let her little one hop away from her, but was always near by to help him when he got scared.  Because she allowed him opportunities for growth, he eventually became confident in his ability to hop around and not be frightened by the other animals around him.  Obviously, I'm sure she wouldn't have stood idly by if he was about to do something dangerous, but she didn't let the worry that something *could* happen stop her from letting him hop away from her.

I remember when I first heard Elder Wilson's talk back in April, I looked at my sweet little girl and realized that I'll need to do my best to, in the words of Joseph Smith, "teach [her] correct principles, and let [her] govern [herself]".  I'm totally a chronic worrier, and I mentioned to Tom the other day that if I'm not careful, I'll turn into one of those helicopter parents I read about.  (Luckily I have Tom around to help me not become that way, as he's not prone to that type of thing like I am.)

Amazing what kind of lessons one can learn (and be reminded of) from such a simple children's book.

(PS If anyone is wondering where I got "Pouch!" from, it came in the mail as a part of the "Dolly Parton Imagination Library" that I signed Ann up for.  It's for kids ages 0-5 (if I remember correctly) You can go here to see if you're eligible for it/it's available in your area.  I think mine comes through our local United Way.  You get a free book in the mail every month.)