EYES OF WONDER
September 30, 2012
Happy Autumn to one and all! I can’t believe another month has passed since last I doodled, but the change in seasons is so welcome. The older I get, the longer summer seems to last, and I mean that in a hot tamale old lady kind of way. Whooeeeeeeee! Heat exhaustion can happen from the inside out during this time of life.
I’m sure everyone is hoping I will write about Charlie, the adorable grandson, so I will mention him in passing just to make you happy. He is now army crawling to computers, sitting up pretty well, trying out his two tiny teeth on all kinds of softish table foods and sometimes shoes, belly laughing at the dog and tummy tickles, and looking at the world with wonder in his big blue eyes. So much pride, joy and fun wrapped up in a quickly growing package! I really think you all need a photo right about now, even though the two or three of you who read this have probably seen enough of him on Facebook. Too bad.
You are entirely welcome!
So here’s the other prevailing thought in my head tonight. Why can’t we all retain the wonder of childhood? When we look out the window and see a glorious sunset, or the autumn colors transforming our hills into a patchwork quilt, or a katydid singing away on the windowsill, why can’t we always have this look on our faces and this joy in our hearts? Why can’t we look at each other like this, too, even when things aren’t going our way or that person we’re looking at isn’t exactly doing what we think is right? Why can’t we love people as the creative works of God that they are, just the way they are, even when we disagree?
Because we grow up and discover that life is hard sometimes and we get grumpy and selfish and tired and just plain sinful. Even children have their less than wonderful moments, but at least they don’t know better for awhile, and when they do, they have to learn how to control their impulses. As adults we make conscious choices to control our selfishness or just let it fly out all over the place. Jesus should be our example. He loved the most lowly of sinners, ate with them, forgave them and advised them to go and leave their life of sin behind. He didn’t yell and scream or treat them like less than human beings or call them names or abuse them in any way. He just loved them with compassion (John 8:1-11, 4:4-26). The only people he got mad at were the religious leaders who were lording it over the other people, insisting that everyone live up to impossible standards of their own making, and acting as if their manmade rules were God’s truth. Jesus did call them some names (Matthew 23:1-32). And he also got a tad angry with those who were using the Temple area for money making ventures instead of worshipping God (Matthew 21:12-13).
Some of you may be wondering what I’m getting at, and if you are, you are blessed. Those who know, know. That’s all I’m going to say about that.
Let’s all go look at a katydid singing in the sunset with little Charlie!