A Confession

I substituted in primary today. The teacher called me, I think, because I own one of the squirrels in the class. I had taught the class before, months ago, and ended up with a headache and a sincere desire to check caller id before I answer the phone on a weekend. Today, though, the class was great. The kids were still full of energy, and one particular fairy princess kept dancing around and waving glitter everywhere (OK, that would be mine) but we had a productive and interesting discussion on the plan of salvation. It was fun.

A while ago, I took the kids to the dentist and, upon learning that I had six (!) kids, she picked up her jaw from the floor and commented that I must really like children. I was a little discombobulated. I got the impression that she viewed me as some strange phenomenon who loves to pinch cheeks, fix snacks, and wipe noses. And the the thing about kids is that they're not always likable--either singly or in aggregate. They can be whiny, bratty, rude, rotten, stubborn, spoiled, sloppy, slovenly, ditsy, flaky, too clever, too slow--and on, and on, and on. But if you give them a chance, kids are also pretty easy to love. When you look into a child's eyes, you see the windows of a soul that has not yet learned to close its shutters against such intrusion. Those windows reflect the pure light of Christ, all the more beautiful because it is unearned, unasked for, and that those small souls are unaware of the light within.

So, I don't think I particularly like children, more than any other group. But they are so easy to love.