My son sometimes does this funny thing at night.
He’ll be peacefully asleep when, suddenly, something jolts him awake. The pacifier’s long since fallen out, but he can’t find it to soothe himself back to sleep.
So instead of searching for the pacifier or trying to suck his thumb, he does the funny thing: He sits upright and cries.
He’s so tired that he barely sit upright. And yet, he sits, waiting for me or my wife to come in and fix things. (Fixing things usually entails finding the pacifier, putting it back in his mouth, and then helping him lay down.)
I wish I could explain to him that things are OK. I wish I could explain how he could solve the problem without needing our help.
He’s still a bit young to understand that. But one day, I’m looking forward to being able to explain to him that he’s got everything he needs to handle the situation himself — and then watching him handle it with ease. I know he can do it.
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That photo of a baby’s room — one that’s far too clean to be my baby’s room — was taken by Collov Home Design for Unsplash.