Life Lessons with Charis

Lessons that Charis teaches me every day:

1. Take joy in the small things. (All I have to do is smile at her, or bounce on the bed with her, or kiss her neck, or sing silly songs to her, and her precious smile absolutely lights up the room.  If only I could find such joy in simple things!)

2. We live for much more than ourselves. (This little girl depends on me fully for her food and sustenance, and she needs Zach and I's love and affection constantly.  I learned to become a "we" on my wedding day, but now "we" are learning to become a "we three" all the time.  There is never a moment that I stop being her mom).

3. Sacrifice produces the deepest love. (As all parents know, caring for a baby requires a fair amount of sacrificial love -- sacrifice of time, of sleep, of energy, of opportunities.  That is certainly not to say that we aren't repaid, because one look from her makes it all worth it.  But the fact remains that the more I sacrifice for her, the more I understand what love really is.)

4. I should trust God as my Heavenly Father as well as Charis trusts me as her earthly mother. (She has no control over whether she is picked up or walked around or laid down or fed or changed.  Of course she can signal her delight [with smiles] or dissatisfaction [with screaming] over our actions, but she still relies completely on our wisdom as her parents, whether she realizes it or not.  Can we let go of our own lives and place them in God's hands?)

5. Becoming a parent is one of God's most precious gifts. (Enough said.)