Mother Knows Best

I'm claiming responsibility for this one.  Yep.  I'm the real impetus behind Tyler's new hobby of skydiving.  I know without a doubt that he never would have overcome his fear of heights and falls if it hadn't been for my motherly coercion.  It all began during the summer of 1994,  when we took a family trip to Minneapolis, Minnesota.  Joel was taking a class, so Ashlea, Tyler and I spent our days sightseeing...which included the Mall of America.  Ashlea, age 9 at that time, already loved roller coasters, the bigger the better, while Tyler, age 6, preferred to have his feet, and stomach, firmly planted.  Ashlea wanted to ride the roller coaster in the center of the mall, so Ty and I waited in line with her until it was her turn to ride.  At that point, the attendant told me Ashlea could not ride by herself - I would have to go with her.  Instant dilemma. Either we all three ride, or nobody rides.  When I announced my decision that we would all ride, Tyler began backing through the line of people behind us, saying, "No! No! No!"  I grabbed him and, like any good mother, dragged him back to the front of the line and shoved him through the turnstile. (I know some of you moms are gasping in horror...but that's the kind of mom I am.)  I then got down eye level with him and basically told him to "man up"...in terms a six year old can understand.  He calmed down, and we all got on the coaster before someone called mall security. The motherly coercion didn't end there though.  The next venue was Cedarpoint a couple years later, where I actually resorted to bribing Tyler to ride a couple roller coasters with me, after the pleading failed.  

But look at Tyler now...jumping out of airplanes traveling at 90 miles per hour at 3500 feet...it's a start.  After five static line jumps, he'll be able to free fall from higher altitudes.  Now he's trying to convince us that we should take up skydiving.  Moms don't have to "man-up," do they?