08/18/2023
See these faces?
This pic captures one of our most epic parenting fails.
This is what 3 teenagers look like when their parents’ discover (at the airport ticket counter) that their passports expired but the kids’ passports are still good. We were heading to Costa Rica on a family mission trip to build a house for a refugee family, because my kids were such entitled jerks on all past vacations we told them the only trips we’d take them on in the future were opportunities to serve others.
So there we were, committed to this leading this trip, and we couldn’t fulfill our adult roles. The kids immediately voted to travel onward without us, so this is the moment they went on their way to navigate a multi-flight international trip and figure out the next few days on their own. Hubby and I were able to get renewed passports the next day, and joined them about 48 hours later.
To this day, it was their favorite trip ever. They bonded over figuring out declaration forms and long customs lines with extra luggage in Houston for a changeover, used their basic high school Spanish skills to get a cab and find our hotel, and jumped in to serve with the building project with the local nonprofit.They mocked us endlessly for our irresponsible parenting, but through it they sprouted stronger wings to carry them forward on their future adventures.
(This trip was 7 years ago, when they were 18, 15, and 13.} Most of our parenting mess-ups probably made the most important moments in our kids’ development. Now they are confident grown & flown world travelers and I credit our total parent-fail passport mishap to one of the best learning experiences we could have imagined.)
My kids have thrived despite my inequities and failures. I’m oK with that.
Shared with permission Kami Marland Gilmour
