Dealing with Disappointment

by Mike Tiemann

It was a bright spring day in 2014. My daughter was five at the time, and we were spending the early afternoon where we often did: at the park.

She had recently graduated to the “big kid playground,” which had a giant, enclosed slide, fast swings . . . and a set of tall monkey bars that looked impossibly imposing for her tiny frame.

I should tell you that my girl has always been fiercely independent. Strong-willed. Determined. On this particular day, she focused all her attent...