Samantha loved watching her cats play. They ran with each other, and tackled each other, honing their skills. But Sadie seemed to always be set upon by both Lucy and Tom. Lucy was the “alpha” or oldest of the three. Tom was a male younger than Sadie and he was always pouncing and jumping on Sadie. Samantha told her father, “Dad, I feel sorry for Sadie. Both of the others always attack her.” Her dad replied, “Yes, but have you noticed that Sadie can run faster than either of the other two? She can also climb higher in the trees than the others. The challenge has made her stronger.”
At school, Samantha sometimes felt like Sadie when she played basketball. The tall guard delighted in knocking down her shots. She noticed that she began to feel sorry for herself, and then she remembered what her father had said about the challenge. So she practiced ways to outrun the guard and she learned to do jump shots. This caused her to be a leading player on the team. When she told her father how she had learned from watching Sadie, her father said, “You see, Honey, like Sadie, you became faster and can now outrun the guard. Instead of climbing higher in the trees, your jump shots keep your shots out of her reach. The challenge made you stronger, too.”
Discussion: What challenges do you face? What do you need to do to meet the challenges? What can you learn from watching animals or from watching other people who have to deal with challenges?