Overheard

"Itty, can you say, 'Bumblebee'?"

(Awww, I think to myself, Bittyman is reading the My Big Animal Book to Ittyboy.)

"Itty, can you say Bulkhead? How 'bout Optimus Prime?"

(Ah, not so much reading the My Big Animal Book, but Bittyman's new t-shirt. And if you don't know what kind of shirt he was sporting, then you either aren't male or have never been the Mom of a male.)

Today's reflection from Sacred Space:


Children are deprived not because we do not give them things, but because we do not sufficiently value what they give us. We need to be alert to welcome what children have to offer. You remember how Kahlil Gibran wrote about children,

You may give them your love but not your thoughts, for they have their own thoughts. You may house their bodies but not their souls, for their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams. You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you. For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday. You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.

Our children are flying forward into areas we have not charted ourselves. What is asked of us is in Kahlil's last phrase, ‘Even as the Archer loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable.' We are expected to be calm, reliable, showing a steady love in our own lives, and to offer our children what Jesus offered: time, love, stability, and a readiness to bless.


I admit, I had no clue who Kahlil Gibran was. But this meditation on children really struck a chord with me so I thought I'd share it with my fellow Moms. A quick Google search and now I'm just soaking up his poems and other works.

Why Bitty Might Not Live To See Six

"Mom, were you born in 2008?"

"No, I was born in 1969... why?"

"Wow...is that the old days? Like when you had to wash clothes on rocks or something?"

21st Century Child

"Bitty, how many times do I have to remind you to push the button to close the sliding door when you get out of the minivan?"

"But Mom, my brain's already full... I gotta delete some stuff first."

Please tell me I did not just hear Bittyman say...

"Mom! Come quick! I think Itty just ate a SPIDER!"

Please tell me I did not just say...

"Bitty, stop licking your brother!"