I hate roundabouts. Seriously. And I hate them more with my 15 year-old behind the wheel. Roundabouts tend to bring out the worst in drivers. The obnoxious, the oblivious, and the delirious.
That last trait probably just belongs to me. Well, maybe it would also apply to the other 50 million sleep-deprived mothers trying to get from Point A to Point B , then to C, D, and E safely while correcting the backseat behavior and requesting that fries not be thrown out the window. And just for kicks and giggles, let's throw those moms in some roundabouts. Better yet - a couple roundabouts that are connected like pretzels. Now the party has started...
This past weekend my hubby took our two oldest sons on an annual youth group trip to Vancouver. The event is centered around Bible teaching but inevitably the stories I hear about have more to do with pranks, late night adventures, junk food stops, and the disgusting details of Truth or Dare. Apparently a three hour bus ride is a carnival of mischief. Gross.
I spent the evening with friends and came home after the boys returned from their trip. The house was dark and it was long after bedtime so needless to say, I was a tad surprised when I climbed out of the car and was greeted by Riece, my oldest son. He has a 'puppy personality'; he's playful, even-keel, ready to laugh, warm, and friendly. He also has huge brown eyes which he's learned to use to talk me into driving him somewhere or letting him have dessert. Rather than lecture him about being in bed on a church night, I let him pull me into a huge hug. For him to excitedly greet me in the front yard meant that he had something he wanted to talk about.
My older two boys are on FaceBook which makes for great conversation fodder. As does the news. As does life. The boys and I will show each other postings or share a news story which focusing on the silly and stupid. Since I have such a huge and compassionate heart (lots of sarcasm here), I'll often respond to a posting with a snort some type of loving comment like, "Now there's a genius."
"Seriously people?!?" "What the...?" "Now there's a brianiac." Obviously my hypocrisy is tremendous as I'm not the brightest bulb in the box. Granted, there are 'green light' areas of my personality or within my skill set that allow me to shine in certain situations but more often than I care to admit, I overlook the obvious, forget the memorable, ask dumb questions, or just tune out altogether.
Since placing a Bible under my sons' pillows at night won't result in an instant download of understanding God's unwavering love, grace, and truth, I've had to learn to be creative in how I teach, instruct, and how I nurture the souls of my boys. Ultimately their hearts and souls will burn with flames of their own choosing, but as a mom, I can sure place some quality kindling while I have the opportunity.
And really, our children's hearts are the most precious possessions that any parent holds knowing this possession is short lived as our children grow, mature, and make choices of their own. We don't possess their hearts for long, especially if we don't love and tend their hearts well. We have the power to break hearts, mend hearts, grow hearts, and shape hearts. We must fight for hearts.
