![Livesay [Haiti] Weblog](http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-WImkelA85fQ/T774B_tbjMI/AAAAAAAANjM/Zup5rYTxdWs/s810/blog%2Bheader%2BTRL2011-07-07_%2B%25281%2529.jpeg)
 |
| Paige & Noah |
There is nothing quite so entertaining as ideological, philosophical, and theological discussions with a couple of ten year olds and a seven year old.
The boys especially love to engage in long conversations that weave hither and yon. They're cholk-full of ideas and enjoy a chance to pontificate upon the deeper meanings of everyday life and some of the regular occurrences in Haiti. Most interactions are good for a snort laugh or two.
The other night we were discussing K, the young woman that died as a result of AIDS. Troy and I left to go tell her sister the news. The kids knew that is what we were doing and were anxiously waiting for us to come back home. They know the little sister pretty well and asked how the little sister was and how she dealt with the news of her big sister's death?
We talked a lot about the whole situation and how sad it is. We talked about how some cultural stuff led her to ignore the early diagnosis of the disease. Everyone listened intently and the they were somber as they heard about how our time talking to the sister went and thought about her loss.
Troy said something to the boys about not being able to control the outcomes and the choices people make but needing to love them anyway. He told the kids that the choices we make to love the people in our lives was one of the things we do have a ton of control over, even if the situations and the people were frustrating or difficult. Troy ended with some statement similar to, 'It is hard to always love other people but Jesus showed us that is what we should try to do.'
Noah thought about it all and we could see him ramping up to give us his two cents and copy his Dad with a word of wisdom. He said, "Yeah. That is true Dad. That is true. But you know what?!? You know what is REALLY really hard?"
(insert pause for dramatic effect)
"It is very hard to love people you've never met."
9 comments:
Wow. Some intense wisdom in those words. I'm very prone to going about my day and ignoring the people I don't know, while claiming that I love everyone. Really, though, that isn't true. It can't possibly be.
Thanks for sharing! I love the wisdom God often speaks through children. It's usually far more important than the lengthy ramblings of adults.
It is hard to love people you've never met, though I happen to be developing a love for my friend M's family who I get to meet in 77 days. M is Palestinian Jordanian, as with her entire family and in-laws. Being that they are M's family and Palestinian I just know they will be wonderful. There's something so delightful about the closeness of Palestinian families. It's probably not limited to Palestinians, it's likely to be something found in families across that part of that land, but my only experience is with Palestinians.
Oh, and to add a little seriousness in to the discussion of loosing someone.. When my dad died I sought out pastoral counseling from our then ELCA Lutheran pastor. I sought her out, instead of my own pastor, because she is an extrovert, and I needed that. When dad died she said a lot of things, but one simple thing stayed with me - "The pain [of grieving] is the story of the love." I love that because it gives meaning to the pain of loosing my father, and more recently, my best friend. The pain of the grief reminds me of how much I loved those two people. It still sucks big time, but it's still nice to be reminded.
-Brooke, in Logan, UT.
he is right. much harder to love random stranger you've never laid eyes on or talked to than it is to love your sister or friend or neighbor. neither is impossible though. :)
LOVE it!
My 2 younger boys (ages 10 and 11) are both deep thinkers and big-time-talkers. Oh. My. Yes. I love the discussions they can start, and the thought processes they have. Would love to see all 4 of our boys discussing theology or politics or something together. :)
I don't know. I kinda love Noah and I've never met any of ya'll.
:-) aww, I'll pass that along to Noah. That will jack with his theory.
Noah is hilarious. Maybe he will be a stand up comedian when he is older!
Your Noah reminds me so much of my 7yo son....if we ever do make it to PAP, I believe we should never ever allow them to get together. (of course that is a joke, they would probably get along great...but only with trustworthy supervision.:-) )
Post a Comment