“Children are a gift from God, a reward to be cherished." ~ Psalm 127:3
I’ve often felt that children are
closer to angels than we adults are. They
seem far more ready to share joy freely; to know how to celebrate life, laugh,
smile, and embrace delight just as God meant for all of us to do. Nothing implanted this point in my heart more
clearly than a story a friend of mine recently shared about her daughter.
April and Simone were sitting in the plastic
chairs lining the walls of the cancer hospital’s radiation treatment waiting
room. While she waited for her
husband’s therapy to finish, April busied herself in a book; little Simone curiously observed
the others in the room.
She loved doing that; taking in her surroundings and the
people that filled them, trying to determine what they were thinking and
feeling. She’d been born cognitively
impaired, yet her soul shined brighter than a thousand suns. She loved everyone and was never afraid to
express her affection to others.
On this day there were but three others in the waiting room -
an older man and his wife and a young woman in her thirties. Distress seemed etched in the faces of the
older adults.
“Would you like a hug?” Simone asked.
Now most people would have politely declined. Some people might’ve felt this was
inappropriate or even a little creepy.
But those people hadn’t been blessed enough to know Simone; never one to hold back her
love.
The woman opened her arms wide enough for Simone to snuggle
in. She gave her a hug full of both
energy and love; one that could easily chase away bad dreams, make the sun
shine on a gloomy day, or set the world right.
Both parents stood and gestured that they could use a
similar hug. Simone gladly obliged
before returning to her own chair. No
additional words were spoken … none were needed. She’d accomplished her mission without
conditions.
Our children can teach us so much about compassion, so much
about joy, so much about life! Let’s not
ignore the lessons they give us every day. Just watch them … or ponder your own
open-minded inner child.
Let’s instead learn from them and share more passion and joy
with others in our own lives. God put us
here to love each other. Sometimes we
forget, but thankfully God is patient and forgiving with us. He never fails to send us joyous angels and
happy children to guide us back to love again.
