A cool quotation that I came across today was sent from a friend.

Helen Keller,”Character cannot be developed in quiet and ease.”

I think about that in terms of Hannah going to public school.  There have been so many amazing conversations that have resulted of something happening at school.

Some of our most impactful character teaching moments have been after something went down at school.

It has been good to talk those things through with her.  If she was insulated in a bubble, we would have missed out on those opportunities.  No doubt after many tears, there have been times I wanted to just withdraw and remove her from hurtful people and experiences.  But I pray she is learning how to process these hurts for one day when she is no longer under our roof.  I pray her character is being strengthened by these trials.  I still pray for protection because storms are inevitable.  At times I would rather it be easy and smooth sailing for her but that is not how she will encounter the world with all its disappointments and hurts.

All this came to mind after reading a cool blog post by Carrie at the Parenting Passageway.  She quotes