The Art of Accepting Help

Why is it so hard to accept help from others? There I was at church on Sunday - me with 3yo old Owen and his toy guitar, 11wk old Aoife in her car seat with her changing bag. A lady that I know came over at the end and offered to help carry my bag to the car. "Oh no" I said, "Don't worry!" "Accept the offer of help" she said and so I did. What was the sense in turning her down? None! I'm going to try and bear that in mind a bit more. Why "cope" and "manage"? What am I trying to prove and to who? If someone wants to carry my bag or hold my son's hand or watch my baby then I will gratefully accept. It is the stronger person that accepts help rather than tries to be stubbornly independent the whole time.