Taking A Walk Outside

Throughout my entire pregnancy I vowed to never waste money on a stroller. I'd always envisioned them as a cage that I put my child in, while I walked around free and happy. Family members offered to buy me one but I refused. What would I need a stroller for? I absolutely hated it when people were pushing them around in the local small stores and I saw them as a waste of space. How many times would I really use it? A total of three, maybe? Finally, Phillip's parents spotted one at a yard-sale and called and asked if I wanted it. The first thing out of my mouth was asking the price. "$5", they said. "Sure. I suppose $5 isn't too bad of a price and I can just send it off to someone else when I'm done with it." For months and months it sat at their house and everytime Phillip would ask if I wanted him to load it up I'd pretend I didn't hear him. Then, the weather started to get warmer, and I started to realize that I was living right across the street from a walking park. I gave in, and asked Phillip to bring it home. The next day, Alec and I ventured on our first walk. I never knew how much Joy it would bring to his face as I pushed him through the trees. Finally after a 30-minute walk, we parked the monstrous stroller in the grass and played. I don't really know what the meaning of this story is, besides the fact that I'm openly admitting that I am stubborn. I'm guessing it has something to do with how Alec reacted when he got to spend so much carefree time outside. No more getting swifted from hip to hip, no more getting handed off to Daddy because my arms felt like they were falling off. The prison I saw in the stroller was no longer there. So now, once a day and sometimes twice, weather permitting, I load my beautiful son up into his stroller, his safe haven for those seemily meaningless 30-minutes, and let him know what it feels like to be free.