Encouraging confidence to try new things.

It was time for the beginner swim class to jump off of the diving board. The instructor told the students that if they didn’t feel comfortable that they didn’t have to jump. All of the kids had jumped a couple of times except for one girl. The other kids cheered her on as she inched her way to the end of the board. If it weren’t for her classmates cheering, “you can do it,” she might not have found the courage to even reach the end of the diving board. 

After what seemed to be an eternity, she looked at her cheering friends, took a deep breath and took that leap of faith. Emerging from her jump with a smile on her face, she looked at the instructor and squealed, “Can I do it again?” Needless to say, she had fought through her fear and found a new favorite thing to do in the water thanks to the encouragement of her classmates.