In Light of Eternity...

Her Younger Brother
"Who is your best friend?" I ask my daughter.

"My brother," she concludes.

"That's wonderful! I am glad you consider your brother your best friend. Remember, you only have one brother. He is your friend for life."

The little girl ponders for a moment. "You know M. and A.? They have two kids too."

"Yes, you are right," I nod.

"But the people across the street – they have five bucha!" she exclaims.

I smile to hear a rare Hindi word thrown into an English sentence. "Yes, they have five children."

My daughter pauses for a moment. I can almost see the wheels turning in her head. "They should give some away," she surmises.

I burst out laughing.

I find it beautiful how my daughter is content about the make-up of her family. Our composition is what she knows: Daddy, Mommy, Sister and Brother. She really hasn't asked for another sibling. And she completely understands why we are giving away or selling our infant supplies. After all, we don't have babies in our house anymore. She accepts her reality and implicitly trusts that her parents are making the best decision for the future. She exemplifies the child-like faith Jesus Christ encourages.

Unlike myself.

Really, in the grand scheme of things, do half of the things I fret about really matter? Why do I worry so much about what will happen 10 years from now? Or 20? Or 30? Why does the temporal have such a grip on me considering the brevity of life and the unfathomable length of eternity? And why do I try to maintain a sense of control when the best thing to do is let go?

In the meanwhile, I put on a brave front as I gift other Moms with little girl clothes or negotiate a garage sale deal over the purchase of our crib mobile. Part of me is screaming, "No, no, no, no..." The other part of me is praying for courage to part with stuff loaded with memories in order to embrace our new stage of life where we focus on equipping our kids for eternity.

In the end, it will not really matter whether or not she had one sibling or four. However, what will matter is whether or not she accepts God's free gift of grace found in Christ Jesus and submits to His Lordship. I pray that God will use us, and others, to impart these eternal truths to our daughter and her best friend.

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