My Bad.
Those two words strung together are among my favorites.
Why? Because they imply accountability, responsibility, owning up.
I respect a person who can admit a wrong.
It's hard.
I hate making mistakes, they bug me.
But I have found that mistakes are often our best teachers.
The lessons are in what you choose to do with a mistake.
Today was a rough day at our house.
We had a few Our Bads.
Definitely no fun, but a life lesson none the less.
To frame this story up, I need to give a little background on our family.
We are rule abiders by nature, all of us. I don't say that to boast, it really is just the way we're wired.
When Mark was first called as a Bishop, he came close to memorizing the handbook. He would fall asleep with it almost every night for the first few months. In his years serving in the stake, he has earned a solid reputation of "going by the book". People joke about his commitment to the rules and guidelines. He will not go against them.
I'm the same way. When I was a kid I would stress for a few days before my library books were due. Oh the horror of not turning a library book in on time!
I drive the speed limit.
I pay bills early.
I return phone calls.
I would never dream of parking in a handicapped spot, even for a second.
And I think I would be mortified if I ever violated a home owner's covenant.
Lincoln and Rachel are products of their parents. They have never been in trouble at school. Neither one of them has ever had a B and I can't think of a time they have not had straight honors on citizenship. They have earned many awards for citizenship and leadership because of their rule abiding natures.
It's not just school- the other day I filled a prescription for Linc and later that day Rachel reviewed with me the side effects and dosage instructions. She had read all the information that the pharmacist had enclosed.
We really are a pretty law abiding bunch and that is why what I am about to tell you is so out of the ordinary for us.
Last week, the twins came home and announced that they would both like to run for senate at their school. They brought home the paperwork after school and I read it over.
The rules I remember stated that you could not hand out fliers, wear t-shirts promoting yourself or hand out stickers. Each student could have two posters and one page to state what they would do to improve the school.
And the most important thing in my mind: you couldn't spend over 15.00.
Saturday afternoon we picked up the poster supplies. We carefully tallied the costs. I got a few pictures at Costco and we were still way under budget so while I was there I grabbed a bag of cheap candy for them to write their names on and give out.
Sunday after church, we sat down and pounded out their posters. That was A LOT of work!
We busily cut and glued and cut and glued and cut and glued.
Four posters and one blister later, we finished.
Yesterday I heard the twins calling some of their friends to help them pass out candy at lunch.
Today, they happily headed out the door with posters and candy in hand.
At lunch they were talking to kids and passing out candy when someone said,
" I don't think you're supposed to do that".
They were both a little startled. They looked around and noticed that no one else was giving out candy so they put it away.
Later that afternoon, the advisor approached Rachel and asked her if she and Lincoln had been passing out candy at lunch.
Rach answered that they had.
The teacher, in her gentlest way told Rach that passing out candy was against the rules. She said that a mom of another child had called her and said,
"The twins were passing out candy at lunch so is it ok for my child to as well?"
(Translation: Lincoln and Rachel were breaking rules)
"I'm sorry but I am going to have to disqualify you and your brother," Mrs. Garcia said.
Rach was stunned.
So this afternoon they sadly packed up their posters and came home.
There were a few tears and a couple of devastated faces.
Deep disappointment has been the mood around here.
There it was, written on bright orange paper, NO Handouts.
We all must have read it but none of us processed it.
I was so hung up on not exceeding the 15.00 budget, that's all I really had on my mind.
It was not intentional.
We were not trying to pull a fast one.
But none of that matters, because at the end of the day, we were wrong.
We should have read and re-read the rules.
There is no one to blame but us.
Our bad.
Plain and simple.
Lincoln and Rachel have handled this with such dignity and maturity.
Rach wrote a letter to the teacher involved apologizing for their error and telling her that next time they will read the rules better.
Linc said that he is just going to pick a couple of his friends to really campaign for. He wants to do all he can to help them win.
We counted up the candy that was left in the bag.
They passed out a total of 25 pieces.
25 little pieces of candy.
Probably not enough to sway an election.
But way more than enough to learn a lesson.
My bad.
Two words that sting.
Two words that are part of life.
Two tough words that can help us grow and do better next time.
And next time, we will.
