It has been one of those endlessly frustrating days. Toddlers are sometimes merciless in their demands. Today was filled with tantrums and runny noses, with sibling on sibling crime at an all time high and many tears shed by not one of us but all of us on more than once occasion.
In the middle of a timeout I catch myself angrily scolding my daughter Lily and I stop momentarily to think about this little soul sitting in front of me. This precious, infuriating, button pushing almost 3 year old who for all her bark has a tender spirit and a fragile heart.
"Pray with her." speaks a voice out of the silence. And so I do. We pray about hurt feelings and ask for help and strength and the words to speak up when we feel upset. We prayed for her little brother who is sick and her daddy who is at work. We prayed for each other and that we would both know just how much God loves us and how much we love each other.
At the end of the prayer I get a sweet chubby toddler hug and a mischievous smile that tells me the peace of the moment probably won't last all that long. But, that's alright. All we needed was a moment to recognize God in our impatience and in each other.
Children are the most effective way of showing us that we are not in control. My children push and inspire me to lean not on my own understanding. To let go of the way things should be, to surrender my plan of how the day should go and to try to learn how to embrace the beauty in each crumb covered, beautiful, sacred moment.
When mom doesn't have the words to comfort or to teach, it's ok because God always has the words and the space and the love to cover us.
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