The Band-Aid

I was trying to complete my daily household tasks, when my three year old son ran into the house, declaring he had an “Owie!” I ran to him to assess the scathe, only to see that what was causing his distress was a small skin irritation. “This is where you got hurt?” I asked him. He confirmed that it was indeed. He then proceeded to beg me for a band-aid. “Mom I need a band-aid, a band-aid will make it all better!” I remember when I was little the magical healing powers lay only in my mother’s kiss. One kiss from her and suddenly all pain would cease and I would be able to carry on with my day. However, with my children it seems the “Winnie the Pooh” or “Dora” plaster has more potency than my lips can bestow. It is truly amazing the magical healing the band-aid can give my children. No matter the size of the skin laceration if I offer a band-aid, the tears stop and the healing begins. What is it about the band-aid and the need to have it? A few days after this incident with my son, my 6 year old daughter called me into her room to show me the “owie” that she had and describe the pain she was in, only to have me completely unable to find it. I searched the area over trying to examine the source of her pain and found only a pen point size, already scabbed over prick. Later I found out that the true pain was the envy over her brother’s band-aid that he had received earlier that week.

Assuming the reader at this point has developed an opinion that my children are either clumsy or lack pain tolerance, let me clear this up. My children are actually pretty tough, but for some reason this desire for a band-aid overrides their need to appear to be tough. They want the band-aid, they need the band-aid, and they desire the band-aid. It is all about the band-aid. It has made me think lately on what my band-aids in life are. What are the things I need, want, and desire when I have my so-called, “owies?” Emotional pain can be just as burdensome as physical pain. And just as physical pain has it’s miracle drugs, so does emotional pain. For me, however, my emotional pain remedies don’t require the use of a prescription. Sometimes the healer can be as simple as a Cadbury chocolate bar, a large one of course. The small ones are more taunting than helpful. Just a measly taste and then they are gone, only to have me wanting more and the emotional pain that I was feeling prior to, has then been overridden by my desire to seek out more coco-fulfillment. Other times the great alleviator can be a good long chick flick, a girl’s night out, reading a great novel curled up on my great big leather couch, or the more expensive route a massage, getting my hair done, a shopping spree. Sometimes to heal my emotional wound my spiritual prowess needs awakening and that is when I turn to my beloved Ensign, my prayers get more heartfelt and frequent and I strive to get more out of my church meetings. I guess really the treatment depends on the pain. So I ask, what are your “band-aids” in life? What are the magical healers that seem to make everything “all better?” It is a wonder that we all need these “band-aids”, we all need the remedy to life and the trials it can bring. Whether we come upon the remedies spiritually or just by enjoying life’s simple pleasures, we need them. We all need that bandage placed safely on our “owies” that will bring about the healing process and the ability to overcome the discomfort and pain. Sometimes the bandage can be a small and simple one, clear so no one can tell you have it. Sometimes it can be large and colorful as a way to call upon the aid of friends and family. Be it what it may, we all have use for our band-aids, and the therapeutic solace they can bring.