Why are there so many rules? I can answer that with my last trip to the zoo.

 Often times as parents we get asked:

"Why are there so many rules?" Do you just not want me to have any fun? 

I can answer this question with my latest trip to the zoo.

My town has a zoo, and it recently opened a new exhibit with hyenas in it. Now I don't know why I got it into my head that hyenas were about the size of a medium-sized dog. Maybe it was from watching the Lion King and the hyenas are so much smaller than the lions. I don't know. 

But when I got my first look at a real hyena I was shocked. THEY ARE HUGE! Their backs are about 4 1/2 to 5 feet off the ground. Their heads are almost as wide as my entire chest, and their mouths could fit a basketball in it with room to spare. 

As I was standing in shock at the size of these huge beasts, I was dimly aware of a girl standing next to me taking pictures of them. The hyenas were staring at her, watching her every move. The girl finished taking her pictures and turned around to leave. Once her back was exposed, both of the hyenas lunged at her. 

The two things stopping them from having her for lunch and me for dessert were a wooden railing and chain link fence. Those two beasts could have easily jumped the railing, however, before they reached the railing they would have to get past the chain link fence. This fence went from the ground up about twenty feet in the air circling over and making a cage.

The girl was completely unaware that if the fence were not there, then she would have been eaten for sure. 

Now there are two ways of looking at this.

1. (The way I chose to look at it.) I am so grateful that the chain link fence was there... or
2. That fence is stopping me from cuddling with the hyenas and taking selfies with them.

Parents have the rules there not to stop you from having fun (#2) but to stop the dangerous things that are on the other side of those rules from eating you alive. 

Using the zoo story, say you were at the zoo and wanted (for whatever reason) to go into the cage with the hyenas (very unlikely but stick with me.) And let's say that you found the keys left by some unattentive worker (also very unlikely). You open the door and stick your foot in, then you pull it back out. Nothing bad happens. You then stick your whole leg inside the cage and still nothing happens. You step all the way into the cage but still keep your hand on the door. Nothing happens. You walk into the center of the cage. Nothing happens. You start to turn...BAM! 

You are hyena chow.

All too often that is exactly what happens to us when we "bend the rules." The first time, maybe everything will be fine, and maybe the next time too, but the fence/rules are there for your protection.  

The two most dangerous words when referring to rules are: "It's just...".

These two words make the danger seem less dangerous.

It's just a sip

It's just a puff.

It's just a hit.

It's just this one time.

It's just a little over the speed limit.

It's just on this one test.

It's just one night.

It's just... it's just... it's just... 

It's just walking into a cage, with two hyenas.