Sam faced his fear

Sam and I stopped by the car wash on Saturday. As we drove up to it, Sam started to wimper and freak out. I said "it's okay, Sam. We're going to give the car a bath." As the car got ready to go through, Sam really started to freak out. The last two times we've gone through, he has screamed the whole way through. Evidently, he remembered. I had tried before to reassure him it would be okay, but I didn't really know how to help him.



This time, I reached back my hand and said "hold my hand. I'm here for you. We'll go through it together." He snatched up my hand with both his hands and squeezed hard. It really surprised me how quick his response was, and it really touched my heart. He started to calm down, and I told him what was happening:



"The car is getting a shower. See, there's the soap, and here are some brushes. They are washing the windows and doors and tires. Now here is some water to rinse. And now for the really loud part. I don't like this part either. Can you help me blow the car dry?"



We came out on the other side with dry eyes and smiles and a clean car. I told him what a good job he did facing his fear. It was a precious experience for me to help with that. He is growing up!