She brings me a picture that she’s drawn on a tiny scrap of paper from a writing tablet that she’s cut up with her children’s scissors.
Sitting on the living room couch, lost in thought, this wisp of a girl floats into the room noiselessly and presents me with a precious gift. “I drew you a picture of Jesus on the cross,” she explains as she shyly hands it to me.
It’s beautiful. It’s a masterpiece of simplicity and clarity. How she managed to get so much of the magnitude of the moment in one small space is a mystery. But she has accomplished that. It’s a pencil drawing, a sketch, really.
But my 3 year old granddaughter created it just for me because an occasion of fantasy revealed an eternal truth earlier today. And tonight, as she draws and colors to calm down at the end of a long day, she thoughtfully and intentionally thinks of me. She wants to share her newfound knowledge and understanding of a concept of self-emptying sacrifice…with me.
I’m sure she will have forgotten all about the gift she was moved to present to me by morning. But I pray she will always hold in her heart the revelation she grasped today. May it grow stronger and deeper and more real within her every passing year.
I hope I’m around to see the seeds planted in her accepting, trusting soul flourish and grow. If this was any glimpse into the future, what develops and increases is going to be amazing. She gave me a gift, but I see, and not just today, this petite sprite has been given a gift that she generously, earnestly shares with others. I want to be like her when I grow up.
Drowning in Lemonade 