My daughter walks over and asks “Daddy, may you read to me?” A mischievous smile spreads across her face.

“Sure.” I sit down on the couch. “Where is Mr. Brown Can Moo?”

“The Hippo Book!” she yells and pulls it from behind her.

Anxiety hits and my heart begins to race as she climbs onto my lap. My other kids claim space on the couch.

I take a breath and just before I open the book…

My son begins to move his finger around the cover and sounds out the title “Hip-o-pot-o-mon-stro-ses-kwi-ped-ay-lee-un. I DID IT!”

We all collapse into a huge hug while cheering.

We resettle. My daughter hands me the book again.

I take another breath and dive in. “Hip. Hippo. Hi….”

***

I finish and the laughter calms. “Why do you guys like this book so much?

“The illustrations are too silly.”

“Mr. Barry made it!” (We know the author/illustrator)

“Daddy can’t read the words.” They all start laughing.

There it is.

You see, I hated reading for most of my life. Even after college, I would have dreams about being called on to read out loud. It turns out I was fighting dyslexia the entire time. I didn’t want people to see me struggle.

As they all walk away, my son gives me a hug and says, “Thank you for practicing with me.”

***

Here I am sitting on a couch holding a kids book with tears in my eyes.

This oversized book with ridiculously long words.

This magically wacky book that sparks endless laughter for kids and anxiety for parents.

This beautiful book that shows my kids it’s ok to struggle…that invites me to show my kids how to struggle.

Sometimes knowing the work is hard is all we need to keep working.

• Where is your pride keeping others from growing?
• Do you need to let someone watch you work?
• Where are you holding things you should delegate?

Do something hard!

Jake

P.S. I don’t hate reading this book anymore. Grab a copy at BigWordsForLittleKids.com