Life Lessons from a Glowstick

At the birthday party H attended this past weekend, they got a bag of favors. One of the favors was a glowstick. One of the children's father turned off the lights briefly for the children to see the glowsticks in action. When the lights came back on, H looked at me and said, "Birthday girl is the best for giving this to me!" He was very impressed with the glowstick. He carried it out to the car, noticing the glow. He kept it right beside him in his car seat on the ride home. He showed it to Daddy and his little brother when he arrived home. He took it in his room at bedtime and placed it on his dresser. I put it on my dresser before I went to sleep. The next morning H asked, "Where is my glowstick?" I gave it to him explaining that it would no longer glow in the dark as they only last so long. He looked at it, took it to the bathroom (where it was dark) to check it out, then came back to me, "Mommy, but I really wish glowsticks would last forever," in a sweet little voice. So, self-help-book-reading mommy that I am, I saw a "teachable moment." I explained that some things that are really fun or beautiful only last for a given period of time: a flower, a perfect-weather day, a yummy snack, so we should really enjoy those types of things when we can, knowing they will soon be gone. This was a good lesson for me as well, right? Live in the moment, put down that iPhone, stop worrying about what you can't change. After all this waxing somewhat poetic, H repeated, "I really wish glowsticks would last forever." I get an A for effort, right?