there is an old saying "sometimes you miss the forest for the trees".
i think parenting is like this sometimes.
because you are near to them everyday,
because you see all the "little" things they do that frankly, drive you crazy,
and because they are "your kids" you want and expect the best for them and are disappointed for them when they fall short.
yesterday, i saw "the forest" in my emma grace.
at richland, parents can eat lunch with their kids, so i decided i would take a few minutes and surprise her and eat PB&J and chocolate pudding with my sweet girl. richland is a VERY diverse school, so emma is getting the opportunity to make friends with lots of kids that don't look like her, they don't go to the same kind of church that emma does, they don't even eat the same kid of food she eats at lunch, and most of then know 2 languages.
at her table yesterday there was, victor, jamal, nora, bavla, emily, cornelius and ammal.
you get the picture.
here is what amazed me, here is what my emma grace taught me, here is what i didn't know about her...
emma grace is colorblind
no, she can see red, yellow, purple, and blue, but when it comes to her classmates, she is perfectly colorblind.
she didn't care that one of her classmates was eating some curried eggs for lunch, she didn't care that another one looked as though they had not bathed in 2 days and wore the same clothes everyday to school, she didn't even notice that there was a new muslim girl in her class that can't speak a word of english, she just saw a new friend who wore a pretty headdress.
amazing
and at the same time, super convicting.
emma, in 45 minutes, reminded me how we should all see and treat each other. she reminded me how Christ see us, and how it will be in eternity, and how Jesus must long for us to embrace each other, and each other's "differences" here on earth.
i am pleading for emma to stay this way as she grows up, i pleading for myself to model this for my family.
don't miss the forest for the trees in your kids...
"They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor.”
--Isaiah 61:3 (NIV)
2 comments:
i love this about children! i think that one reason kids dont stay that way is because of their parents and family. so as long as you're on board, i think you will find that she continues to be that way. i surely hope presley stay this way, too!
This brought tears to my eyes! I know you are so proud of her. I feel exactly the same way when Austin's MDO teachers tell me how kind and considerate Austin is with the other kids. I pray all the time that he will retain those qualities (and that I don't do anything to mess them up!) I agree with Candice, as parents we've got to examine our own hearts and model the same behavior we want to see from our kids. Thanks for sharing this!
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