I am going to brag for a second. Please forgive me. I know it’s horribly prideful, but there is something I am so grateful for and I think it is so wonderful I just have to say it: my kids love to read. I know I have failed in many moments as a mom, but between their brainiac father Mr. Smartypants, my willingness to check out fifty books at a time from the public library and their over-the-top Super Grammie who actually is a librarian, there was more than enough in the gene pool to encourage this affinity for the written word. Plus, we have no video games in the house and no cable tv, so they really have no other choice. Consequently, then, they read. Out of sheer desperation for entertainment, my children pick up one of the two hundred books my mother-in-law bought them last year and they consume the pages like a woman crawling through the desert would consume a canteen of water. It’s survival, baby.
Recently I started reading Little House in the Big Woods to them. Jude got it as a present for his birthday (thanks Melissa and Brett!) and after he finished it, I started reading it out loud to Jack and Jase. I read all of the Little House books in the fourth grade, but really hadn’t opened one until last Christmas when I bought Jude one for a present. Oh, they are divinely interesting!
First let me confess that I have a secret ploy to expose the boys to as many strong female characters as I can before they think that girls are gross. After all, it would be a travesty for them to never meet Laura Ingalls, Anne Shirley or Pippi Longstocking simply on the grounds of cooties avoidance. I generally want them to meet lovely, spirited girls who can beat up the boys in books so they will know two things:
1. Strong, intelligent women are also feminine and should be highly sought after by intelligent boys.
And, of course:
2. Don’t mess with Mama. She is a strong, intelligent, feminine girl capable of taking you down if necessary.
Anyways, in The Big Woods, Pa tells all sorts of stories about when he was a boy and about when his father was a boy. These stories are all fascinating, since they describe life for boys long before electronics, toys and other things without which Jude, Jack and Jase can’t imagine living. In one of Pa’s stories he describes the tediousness of the Sabbath when his father was a child. No work, no laughing, no fun and no jokes were allowed from the time the sun went down on Saturday night until they woke up Monday morning. They slept, ate cold food that had been prepared the day before, they attended church and read the scriptures at home. Solemnity reigned.
I was so struck with how different life and worship are now. I mean, who doesn’t like a good joke in the sermon these days after taking a run for Jesus around the sanctuary? And yet, the story was told because Laura was having a hard time being solemn and serious at appropriate times. She wanted to run and play when she was supposed to sit and be quiet. Which is so EXACTLY how it STILL is for my children. They want to jump on the furniture and chase each other with a baby stroller and throw sharp objects at things and shoot toy missiles into the dishwasher and hang from the ceiling fans and generally DRIVE ME MAD all day long.
That is all they seem to want to do. All day. Every day. (Unless they are reading- which, as you can imagine, makes me love those books even more since they foster quiet stillness in my little testosterone machines.). Don’t get me wrong, they are sweet children who love God and want to do what is right. In fact, if you take only one or two out, it is totally fine. It’s the triple threat that will tear at the very fabric of your sanity. They just don’t know when to stop running and jumping and yelling. For instance, you can’t play freeze tag in parking lots, public stores, doctor’s offices, church lobbies, china shops…. You get the idea.
Every modern thought of giving children space to be free and enjoy their childhood evaporated from my brain right then as I read that book. I knew what Pa knew in that moment. These kids will have to learn to control themselves. It is totally necessary for their survival in this world. It is my job to teach them.
Then I thought of Eli’s sons in the Old Testament. They had this holy priest for a father and yet made a mockery of the holy traditions of the temple. They sinned and didn’t care. It’s never a comforting thought when you start wondering how to avoid being like Eli as a parent. At the same time, it will keep you humble to remember that godly people with good intentions have raised mockers. That thought will drive you to your knees!
So today, I pray for grace for me and courage for them, and I thank Jesus for Pa and his wisdom. May God’s mercy be poured out on all of us.
Amen.
Ellen
Carrie,
I love your post- I am going to encourage people to read it. GREAT!
Carrie Stephens
Thanks, Ellen. I consider you approval a great compliment!