Well, hey! Come on in. I'll put on a pot of decaf. Yeah, I know I said I'd always have one ready, but I have to drink something else sometime! I usually start brewing my evening pot after dinner, while the kids are taking their showers. You're in luck. I just bought some Almond Joy creamer. Can you say YUM??
Kids are something else, aren't they? I don't always think about what I'm teaching them, but occasionally I think I might be doing something right.
Like yesterday, when Catie looked at me with her big ol' puppy dog eyes. I didn't know what she wanted, but I was pretty sure I couldn't afford it. She said in a little-girly voice, "Can I ask you something?" I said, "Yes," but "No" was on the tip of my tongue behind it.
"Can you drive me up to McDonald's or Burger King, and I can buy lunch for the whole family?"
I said, "N...", but I had to stop and think about it for minute. Now, I knew she had only $10, and I always tell them not to eat their money. They don't get an allowance, so when they do get money, I want them to spend it on something for themselves. Something they can use, or keep, or put toward something that they really want.
Catie earns some money helping me do jewelry shows (I sell Premier jewelry), so I knew she'd get more next week. And she really wanted to do something nice for her family. Now, because of our situation (and how often we have to say no), people are generous a lot times. It's nice, and we really appreciate it. There are all kinds of things we have gotten to do or just gotten because somebody somewhere was generous. Accepting things is humbling, especially if you do it enough. (Frankly, after the life I've had and the choices I've made, I'm past the point of feeling bad for accepting, as long as I'm doing all I can by myself. I'm not going to take advantage of anybody, but I figure people don't offer if they don't really want to. I hope that doesn't sound bad.) Maybe that's why a lot of people don't like to accept help. It's a pride thing.
But sometimes, you want to be on the other side. You want to be the giver for a change. It makes you feel like you have something valuable to offer the world. It makes you feel blessed. And maybe that's why people love to give. (Have you ever noticed that? People love to give help but hate to accept it?) And that is what I saw when I looked into my baby girl's eyes. She wanted to do something nice for her family. She wanted to give what she could to the people she loves.
So we left Christopher to his Facebook and went to Burger King. That's where I found out what she REALLY wanted was to buy ICEEs for herself and her brother. But on $10, that plus lunch for three wasn't going to happen. (Christopher, I should mention, is 15 and 6'2. That's a lot of cheeseburgers!) I bought my own lunch and Christopher's fries, and that left her with enough to buy lunch for herself and her brother, one of those heart attacks on a bun he likes so much. She was so proud of herself! She got one of each flavor ICEE and even gave him his choice. Which led to a moment of musical ICEES, because everybody had to taste them both. (It's a good thing none of us have cooties!)
I wondered how long the harmony would last before a flying remote control would shatter it. Surprisingly, it lasted all day!
No comments:
Post a Comment