On Thursday after Jason's accident, I made the one call I hated to make. I called my sonish and told him about the accident. I learned something in that call. I love that kid even more than I thought I did.
As we talked, I kept assuring him his dad was going to be alright but that he needed to be aware of what was happening. He told me later that I said, "Now I don't want to scare you but..." He quickly reminded me that evening that a sentence like that isn't supposed to have a "but" at the end. We had a good laugh about it. I'm so thankful we could laugh about it.
The other thing I learned is that I've done the right thing by being direct and honest with him. It's my personality by nature but I've also made a concerted effort to always tell him the truth and to always be honest when he asks me about something regardless of whether or not I'm comfortable with it. We have honest conversations with one another and continue to build respect for one another. This made it easier for him to trust that I was telling him the truth when I told him about the accident. I told him exactly what I knew and that I knew Jason was in good hands with the doctors who were checking him out. I didn't share my own worries or fears but was honest about the facts and what we expected. He was able to believe me because we've laid the ground work for this kind of trust and honesty.
I wish I could say I was a gifted momish who thought through the necessities of being honest and direct with my teenage sonish. That's not at all the case. I've simply wanted to show him the respect he deserves by being truthful. It's not always easy and doesn't make me real popular among some members of his other family but today I've learned the value in our honest open and direct relationship. I wouldn't trade it for anything.