SPACE TO SOAR: How kids can have a huge impact in our “Adult” world!

Yes, as parents of an eight and five-year-old, we tailor a lot of our activities and plans around the kids – you’ve got to. However, we also try our best to do what we desire, or need to do, with the kids alongside us – the “adult” stuff. This summer, highlighted by reuniting with family and friends, four kiddo birthday parties and slaying bass, I witnessed the helpfulness of our kids in a very “adult” situation. All without prompting or instruction – when given the space. Hopefully this insight I was blessed to observe will give our family as well as others some freedom in doing life together.

First, I’d like to set the stage with a recap of our summer – as it is a part of our journey and decision to live life on the road…

Summer 2021 Recap

After leaving Lake City, SC, we spent a week exploring the Blue Ridge Mountains, part of the Appalachians, via Asheville, NC. Oh the freedom we feel as a family when back in the mountains, walking the trails and seeking waterfall swimming holes! Arriving at our first destination early afternoon of June 12th, we were so pleasantly surprised to be on a small ridge with beautiful hills. With time to spare before needing to prepare dinner, we went for a walk around the property and breathed in the fresh air. Feeling safe about our surroundings, Leah and I let the kids play freely while we finished setting up and got dinner going. Upon setting out to call the kids back, I could not find my five-year-old son, Fisher, yet I heard this distant, high pitched howling coming from somewhere. Walking a bit along the ridge, I saw Fisher around a hundred yards down in the valley with his shoulders back and face to the sky howling his little heart out. Instead of just shouting his name, I decided to give a howl as well, and sure enough with an ear to ear grin, he came sprinting that 300 yards up the hill to get to me. When he arrived I asked what he was up to and he replied, “I was just howling at the moon and the mountains. Sometimes I like to be alone to do that.” You go, bro!

Literally frolicking in the mountains, it felt so good!

My little mountain man, back in the woods, did not stop there with his little surprise insights. After a couple days of checking out the local sites and sounds as well as some beautiful – and frigged – water wholes and waterfalls, we found a small portion of the Appalachian trail we could hike up to a gorgeous bluff with a 360 degree view of the nearby ranges. Fisher, who I am sure will be some sort of trail runner as he matures, was well ahead of us on our way up this bluff. I saw him suddenly stop and take a knee, placing his left hand in the dirt along the path. He stayed like this until we caught up to him, and still didn’t move. When I asked him what he was doing this time, he quickly replied, “I think I just heard God.” Whoa. Quickly motioning to Leah and Faith that this was for Fisher and I to break down, I replied, “Wow, Ok, that’s awesome buddy, can you tell me what he told you?” Again, without hesitation, Fisher thoughtfully said, “He said nature is here for me. Nature will always be here for me, to love me.” And with that, off he went with his little trail trot to lead us up to the bluff. Dude! That’s legit!

Our type of adventure – and little man heard from God!

From there we made our way up to Indiana for an exciting reuniting with family. We stayed the first two and last two weeks of our Indiana trip in central Indiana near my side of the family. We were actually able to park at Leah’s Aunt and Uncle’s house as they so kindly installed a 50AMP outlet to their house! We were able to spend a few nights there as well as at my parents giving everyone breaks when needed. For the middle three weeks of our trip we stayed up near Leah’s side of the family at Leah’s sister’s house. And they did the same by installing a 50AMP outlet to their house! Family is great!

Between the two families we were able to celebrate Faith and Fisher’s birthdays…twice, as well as be there to celebrate Fathers Day, 4th of July, and one of our nephew’s birthdays! We also were able to spend some great quality time catching up with friends, including a three night guys disc golf camping trip to Flip City Disc Golf course in Western Michigan (Look it up – #1 DGcourse in the US on some people’s list!). Oh…and we caught a lot of bass – Fisher took the #1 and #2 largest bass positions this year.

Family time, birthdays and bass slayin’!

The kids’ huge impact

Well, I’ve already mentioned Fisher’s revelations in the mountains, which is pretty mind blowing if you think about it. And I’ve mentioned in other blogs what a light Faith is and the acts of kindness she does out of pure love in her heart. Those instances may just be my kids – but the revelation referenced within this article’s title, I believe, relates to all our children.

In the background of all the family time we were enjoying, a momentous change was taking place for two very special people. My grandparents, through a very arduous decision, had agreed with my dad that they would need help, and it was time to move from their house of 56 years, in a suburb of Chicago, down near my parents. This was a very painful process for all parties, yet all the details worked out so that we would be in town to help. And you better believe my whole family was in to help, knowing it would be hard on the kids.

This was the plan (and how it ended up working out too): The four of us made the 3.5 hour drive up to Chicago-land on a Friday, see my cousins and stay at my uncle’s, then meet at my grandparents’ the next morning with a U-Haul trailer hitched to my truck, then Leah would drive the kids back 3.5 hours following my mom driving my grandparents while my brother, dad and I packed all their take along belongings into the U-Haul. You follow that? It doesn’t matter if you didn’t.

The point is, this was a very emotional, stressful adult time where kids would just be in the way, distracting both mentally and physically. I had thought, and we “adults” discussed ways to do this without them. Coming down to logistics for Leah, as well as her desire to help, it was necessary for them to come. And my goodness was it! Just the presence of Faith and Fisher there in the moment of helping Grandma and Grandpa out of their home brought a lightness to the air. A joyful distraction for us all – but most importantly Grandma and Grandpa. We just gave the kids space to be themselves: Faith gently teasing Grandpa and caring for Grandma, and Fisher chasing bugs and asking funny questions. And instead of a sorrowful and forced departure, through that simple innocence the kids provided, it was a difficult thing we were able to do together as a family, the Jureks.

We were so blessed to be there with and for my grandparents during this transition. And I am so blessed to have been taught this lesson from my kids: we are in this together, each of us having a key role. I hope you chose to do more “adult” things with your kids instead of considering them an extra burden – you may be denying them the opportunity to make a very big impact!