A multi-generational story

Here's a multi-generational story:

My mother-in-law was a woman who left Indiana for NYC in her early 20's, had her small craft pilot's license around that time, drove a car before there was a driver's license and loved deep-sea fishing. She was an art teacher and an artist. She'd promised to take the kids to the beach. But the weather wasn't bad but the waves were bigger than what I'd seen before. Apparently my mother-in-law felt the same way. We drove up, got out of the car, walked to where the tall grasses meet the sand and she said as only Grandma could, "Ok, we've gone to the beach. Time to go!"

But George decided to let the kids actually go and walk on the beach. From his perspective the waves were still wavelets by the time they reached shore. The danger zone lay somewhere between the edge of the water and where the waves swelled. But Grandma didn't even want the kids on the beach.

Easily this side of the danger zone, and knowing she was worried, her son said we're ok. They're just getting their feet wet, knowing they wouldn't go past their ankles. He kept them close (though not as close as even I would have liked). My mother-in-law and I hadn't gone past the edge of the grass. (LOL! Yes, I was nervous. Ok. I was very nervous.)

In the end, they didn't stay long, just longer than Grandma and I were comfortable with. A little risk, alot of wisdom and everyone was fine. He knew the kids. He knew he could keep his eye on them. He knew they weren't going to run off into crashing waves. He'd make sure they stayed well away from the depths that could pull them under. He wanted the kids to respect the water. He wanted to be wise. But he also didn't want to be ruled by fear. And sometimes the roles are reversed when you're a parent trying to lead a child to overcome their fears.

Am I saying go do this? Not really. Just one picture of multi-generational interaction. You probably have photos of your own!