MindSpinner

My teenager is grounded from his computer until 7:00 a.m. tomorrow - major trauma. His infraction aside, what interests me is the difficulty he found in letting go of what would have been his plan for his day. Everything he could think of to do revolved around that computer. He wanted to burn two new songs to a CD; he wanted to read today’s news and research the Cold War; he wanted to play a favorite computer game and make some modifications to it. I tried to help him regroup and think of other things to do, but nothing else would satisfy. I encouraged him to tackle some tasks he’d rather not have to do later, when privileges are restored, but that suggestion (oh, shock) did not appeal.

It strikes me that letting go of Plan A is an essential skill for a successful, resilient life, as is the ability to formulate and move on to Plan B, C, or D. I think I’m on Plan G myself. Plan G is moving forward; I’m making the most of it; it’s nowhere near Plan A, but I’ve learned how to shift gears, to find purposes and aspirations that can be achieved and find a measure of meaning and satisfaction in them. After all, the alternative would be pouting everlastingly about the demise of Plan A, and that just doesn’t sound like much fun. Question is, can I teach an impulsive kid the art of letting go of Plan A and devising Plan B?

One hour later. I have an answer. Plan B has sprung forth as armed and resourceful as Athena from the head of Zeus: “We can go shopping, Mom. For my clothes.”