Every morning while they eat their breakfast, I read to my children. Today found us reading the story of the fall of Jericho in the Old Testament. It always amazes me how wide-eyed they become even though they know the story by heart. Bear laughs at the absurdity of marching around a city to make its walls fall down, but he always claps when they do. Afterward, I pressed the boys on what they learned.
Today’s life lessons from Asher?
Every tooth in a man’s head is more valuable than a diamond.
~Miguel de Cervantes, Don Quixote, 1605
He went to school this morning looking like this.
The Tooth Fairy? Well, she had to ask Asher what the going rate for teeth is in our house, because as he put it, “Mom, you get chemo brain a lot, don’t you?” Then the Tooth Fairy had to raid Bella’s piggy bank for 2 bucks because all she had was a ten. (Is there any magic left in this house?!)
Yep, two teeth in one day. His first ones.
“I’m glad that Jesus died on the Cross, and God’s love is so great that if we could learn to love others that much it would take our whole life and more.” (~Asher)
God’s great love.
For my son, now His son.
Amazing grace.
Overwhelming love.
Intense joy.
Gratefulness at what God has done in Asher’s heart.
This is something we have longed for and prayed for, but something we could not make happen, only God could.
Asher heard the call of mercy and ran headlong as he tends to do with everything.
“Tell a man he is brave, and you help him become so.”
(~Thomas Carlyle)
They stood on the porch, handsome in their uniforms and hugged and made silly faces and posed for first day of school pictures. I laughed and clicked away, trying to hide the hurt in my heart. Saying good-bye is never easy for me, but when it comes to watching my boys grow up more and more and head off to school, the tug at my heart is heavy.
I sat with my boys breathing in the beautiful smell of sweat and dirt and grass. Summer boys, I call them. We talked about star-gazing, and I read them one of my favorite quotes about the stars.
Ash watched me leaf through my journal to find the quote. Ever the thoughtful one, he asked me about it–what I write in it. We talked about how it’s a place I share my heart, my life. He got it. (I just love that he gets it!)
This need to put my heart somewhere because if I keep it all inside I might burst.