The Douglas family’s vacation at the beach was teetering on the brink of disaster. The Douglases love the beach, but on this occasion, their youngest daughter refused to get in the water. More precisely, she was horrified at the prospect of venturing more than two or three steps into the surf. This was a major problem for the Douglas clan because when they go to the beach, they go to the beach. In other words, they are a water–loving family that spend five to six hours per day floating, surfing, splashing, swimming and diving in the water. There had been a storm out in the Gulf of Mexico a few days before their arrival so the waves were unusually choppy for the gulf ... not wild, but not the usual slow rolling ones either. The little girl was afraid of the waves. The next day, the waves were back to normal, but she was still steadfast in her refusal to enter the water. With their youngest spooked, either the father or mother had to stay “beached” in order to watch her.

Up for the challenge, the father took his young daughter for a stroll and talked to her about courage. He told her that it was okay to be afraid but that she needed to face her fear. He reminded her of the fun that she had experienced playing in the ocean only a couple of weeks before.

He asked her if she trusted him. She said, “Yes.”

He took her hand and slowly walked with her toward the surf. She recoiled. He stopped and said, “It’s just you and me. I will be with you the whole time. Trust me. Let’s take a couple of steps at a time.” She nodded and moved forward with her dad.

So father and daughter re–entered the world of ocean two small steps at a time. Ten minutes later the family was having its usual great time in the ocean. Amazingly, the young daughter decided to try her hand at surfing and was standing up on one of the floats in an attempt to ride the small waves. What a change!

As her dad swam over to her, she was singing a song. Here is what he heard:

Courage is the key to victory,

It opens up the door for you to explore.

Courage is the key to victory,

It opens up the door for you to explore.

“Where did you learn that song?” he asked.

“I made it up today,” the girl said.

“Wow, it's great,” said Dad.

“Dad, thank you for teaching me about courage. It made it easier for me to face my fears.”