Hair feathers are all the rage right now. My daughter who is five had been begging me for one for the last couple of weeks, especially since her little girlfriends have started to get them. Thank goodness that started AFTER school picture day. Anyway, last Friday when she had the day off of school for Teacher Records Day, I decided to let her get one. She was soooooooooo excited! It's all she talked about for two days. "Mom, mom, when am I going to get my feather, again?", she'd say...like every 10 minutes.
I did my due diligence as a parent and checked the website of a local salon to make sure they had them, how much they cost, how long they stayed in, and if we needed an appointment. Sure enough, they had them, they were ten dollars, they stayed in "a long time" and they took walk-ins. Yeah!
So off we drove to the salon and when we pulled up we were faced with an empty storefront. Yep, out of business. No sign, no furniture inside....just a completely empty building. I thought....hmmm...sure would be nice if they would update their website. Nonetheless, I said to my daughter, "I'm sorry honey...the store is closed...I mean PERMANENTLY closed."
At that moment, I was instantly I'm bombarded with "BAAAWAAAAHHHHHHH! NOW I"M NEVER EVER GOING TO GET A FEATHER!"
I knew how devastated she was. I felt so badly, but at the same time it wasn't my fault...I did my research...or so I thought. So I started to console her and say, "It's okay, I'll stop by a couple of the other salons along the main road in town and see if anyone else does them and will take a walk-in." And off I drove.
And then it hit me...A MOMENT OF PARENTAL CLARITY! I am NOT going to run all over town looking for another place when that was not in the agenda for the day. I had slated about 30 minutes for the feather endeavor...not God knows how long and a 1/2 a tank of gas. So I said to my daughter very directly: "I'm sorry, G. I've decided that this is an important lesson is delaying your gratification (yes, I use these big terms with her). It's important for you to learn that life doesn't always go as we plan, and this is one of those instances. We didn't plan for the salon to be out of business, but it is and now we have to deal with it. But we don't have to do it right this second. I will go home and do some more online research (and make a phone call to make sure the place is actually open), and you can get your feather tomorrow."
She cried for a few minutes, but recovered, knowing full well I would hold true to my word.
She got her feather on Saturday...the very next day...just like I promised...from the same salon chain...only five miles further down the road!
It's hard as a parent to see our children be upset, and it's worse to suffer through their crying, however long it lasts. But this was an important lesson for her. Thank you, little white angel on my shoulder, for whispering in my ear that day!
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