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Like a child
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It was not quite
The notion of it was suddenly utterly delightful to me, as was this shared secret with a fellow earth traveler in an unrepeatable moment in time. “Is it really! That’s fantastic!” I said. “What’s the date today?” He cocked his head to think a second or two: “March 19th.” “How old are you now?” “Six!” “I hope you have a wonderful birthday today!” I said (Everything was exclamation points.) “I will!” he said, as a foregone conclusion.
Remember the days when you didn’t need context to bring up a subject? All thoughts important to you were instantly relevant. Your friends, to their undying credit, didn’t think you weird but were on board without missing a beat, and ready to go with the flow.
Remember the days when you could expect that something that was good news to you would of course be good news to everyone? Even some strange middle-aged lady walking her dog?
No wonder God loves children especially. I wonder if I can become enough like one again that people over age six will feel free to tell me something out of context, and be able to trust that I care.
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A matter of life
I think alot about having my faith be child-like while not child-ish. I don’t have all the formula yet.
delight-directed learning, Ps. 37, the desires of our hearts are put there by God to be noticed and cultivated
Today is my daughter’s first birthday! She is our first child, and a delight to our hearts! She has helped me to understand even more how good and fun and life-giving our Lord is. We will have a wonderful day today, thanks.
My 8-year-old son is like that. Saturday evening we had an illusionist perform for the kids at church, and afterward I got him a set of magic tricks they were selling (he has long been interested in this and has other magic tricks at home already). For the next day he approached any adult he saw to tell about his Houdini chain escape trick. He even invited one woman to our house to see him do it. (She politely declined but thanked him for the generous invitation.)
As I have gotten older, I have rediscovered the joy of being silly. Not stupidly silly, but playfully silly. And enjoying the little things of life that add a dash of enjoyment to a “regular” day.
Godmadetastebuds - (Cute name.) That first year goes so fast, doesn’t it? Enjoy your daughter’s birthday.
I don’t remember those days, but thankfully there are kids around to “remind” us.
As I was just fixing lunch, my 5-year-old son:
“Can I pour?! Can I mix?!” although he’s done it countless times.
Where was my joy in serving? And the way he greets the morning as a celebration?
I just finished reading Krista Tippett’s “Speaking of Faith”, and she had similar observations:
“And as I watched my children move through the world, I began to imagine what Jesus meant by humility. The humility of a child, moving through the world discovering everything anew, is closely linked with delight. This original spiritual humility is not about debasing oneself; it is approaching everything new and other with a sense of curiosity and wonder.”
Why is the joy increased in the sharing, and dampened when met with indifference or other non-resonating reactions?
Haha! That reminds of the time when I was in Target, and some boy came up to me speaking in the manner of speech that kids sometimes have when their R’s aren’t hard: “Excuse me mistuhr?” He had poked at my side, then showed me one of those clashing-colored, air-pump squirt guns, asking me what I thought of it. I remember telling him, “Holy smokes, that’s awesome!” Then he turned to his embarrased mom who tried to prevent him from bothering me in the first place, and said to her, “See? He understands me.” The kid was like five or six. Haha!