Little things can make all the difference in the world. Today Sophia was playing outside with her sisters, David was napping and I was having a few quiet minutes to myself. It didn't take long before I heard the cries. They got louder and louder and soon they were right there at the front door. Sophia had fallen on the pavement and Olivia had carried her up to the door. She handed her off to me and ran off to play. I carried Sophie inside to assess the damage. She had torn up one hand and scraped her knee. There wasn't too much blood but I'm sure it was stinging. I needed to clean the dirt out of both scrapes and she was in no mood to cooperate. I casually mentioned, "I've got a lollipop for you when we are done." Instantly the fussing stopped. She was cooperative while I cleaned things up and dabbed on a little Melaleuca oil. We hugged for a few minutes, got out the promised lollipop and within minutes she was ready to go back outside.
It is really that easy to solve a lot of problems, or at least make them a little easier to manage. Something as small as a lollipop can make all the difference. We don't always need to perform great huge acts of sacrifice to make a difference in the lives of our families or friends who are struggling. Sometimes just a smile, or a note, or a phone call…a promise of cookies in the afternoon, or an evening game of "Othello," or a story can brighten up the bleakest day. With my little ones it seems that a lollipop can fix almost anything. With the older children one of my best "fixes" is simply listening and sincerely telling them that I understand.
Our family has a poem that we have memorized:
Little drops of water
Little grains of sand
Make a mighty ocean
And a pleasant land.
Little words of kindness
Spoken every day
Make a home a heaven
And help us on our way.
We need to give the "little" things in our lives more attention…the little things WE do and say, as well as the little things said or done to us by OTHERS.
No comments:
Post a Comment