Karyn is three years old and afraid of virtually nothing but deep water and thin ice. I guess both are understandable.Karyn gained her fear of water, I think, last summer while wading in Lake Huron. I stepped away for a moment to address some issue Colin was having when a sudden wave overtook Karyn and knocked her over. I turned around in time to see her go under and rushed over and pulled her out. She was spluttering and crying, but unharmed. She hasn't been the same about water since.
Thin ice was discovery of yesterday. We took a walk across the field next to out house. A pattern of repeated, freezing and raining, and freezing again has made the field turn into a shallow lake with a thin sheet of ice. The water is all of six inches at the deepest point, so there's no danger of drowning in any place we could break through, but Karyn was so unnerved by the sound of ice cracking with the sight of water bubbling to the surface that she broke into tears. She asked to be carried and I told her no, it would be very bad if I slipped and fell while carrying her. Her response made me proud. She still cried bitterly in fear, but instead of freezing on the spot and refusing to move (like I would expect from a three year old girl), she held my hand and walked next to me across the length of that field.
Courage to keep moving even when she is scared is a trait I highly value in my daughter and I know she will go far in life for it.
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