Bedtime Chats with Dad
One thing I know I will miss when the kids have grown out of this stage are the nightly chats at bedtime. While Benjamin and Jacob's nightly chats are aligned with the simple goal of procrastinating going to sleep, Savannah's have evolved into thought-provoking discussions.
Tonight she was letting off some steam about how her friend Edi doesn't act like much of a friend at all when Edi's other friends are around. The discussion evolved and I felt impressed to share with her the importance of controlling where and what we want to focus on within ourselves and in others. We talked about Mom's back and sickness problems and how if that's all we focus on, the relationship gets worse and life gets harder and more miserable. Or how we can focus more on Jacob's fun, excited, and humorous attributes rather than the constant barrage of whining.
We talked about Mark and Ali, and Ruby who has cancer. Mark and Ali seem very happy and have joy in their life. They are happy because Ruby appears to be acting like a normal active 3 year old and isn't lying around sick in bed all day. They are happy that they have had (and continue to have) time together as a family. It would have been easy for them to get mad and complain about how life isn't fair, interrogating the world of justice with the "Why me?" rhetoric. But instead they are experiencing the joy and peace that comes from choosing the right, having faith, and living the gospel.
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