A couple of years back, I took my son Max to his first-ever parade. It was just a few blocks from our house, which made it an easy jaunt. Plus, if he wasn’t enjoying himself, we could make a quick getaway.
One of the local churches had set up a free carnival right on the parade route. There were snow cones, face painting, and a gigantic inflatable obstacle course. The plan was for two kids to race to the finish line, but I had a different idea in mind for Max.
The course looked like a blast, and I could see him itching to join in, despite his low muscle tone making it a bit challenging. Could he really tackle an obstacle course? Probably not, but I decided to give it a shot. With my assistance, we wouldn’t be racing anyone; our goal was simply to make it to the end.
Let me tell you, it was tough! But Max was having a great time, and the soft inflatable surfaces made it safe for him to roll and crawl his way through. He had to navigate his way between large inflatable pillars and climb over cushy bolsters. Sure, he fell quite a bit, but his laughter echoed through the carnival!
As we progressed, I realized we were taking longer than expected, potentially holding up the other kids. A pang of guilt hit me, but Max was so happy that I didn’t want to rush him. Then we reached a point where the course opened up, and I noticed a sizable crowd had gathered to watch us.
My heart sank. I thought, “They must be annoyed and want us to hurry up.” But as I focused on Max, I suddenly heard the crowd cheering him on.
“You can do it!”
“You’re doing amazing!”
“Keep going!”
I felt a rush of emotion as we continued our journey. Then we hit the wall—an almost vertical climb with footholds and a rope. There was no way Max could ascend it alone, and I wasn’t about to carry him up. But right then, a woman jumped in to help. She scaled the wall and reached out for Max’s hands. Together, we pulled him up, and he reached the top!
The final destination was the slide (which also looked nearly vertical), and down we went! When Max tumbled out onto the grass, he was overjoyed. He had conquered the obstacle course, and the crowd erupted into cheers. He looked like he had just crossed a marathon finish line, and my heart swelled with pride.
After all that excitement, we treated ourselves to snow cones and enjoyed the parade. It was a day I’ll never forget.