Recently Whitney and Carli have rediscovered the diary that Cherry kept on both of them. They have walked through their first steps, behavior, and words. Some of them were cute and predictable; most of the time those were not the incidents that made the page. On other occasions they were cute, outrageous, and stunning.
A recurring question that comes is “was I really like that.”
It is as if I am a neutral party reporting on the actions of the person involved.
“Yes, you were the two year old that stuffed twenty-seven sticks of gum in your mouth at one time.”
“Yes, your mother did offer to sell you to the Nordstrom’s store clerk.” (Only to be met with whimpering looks and a pleading question; “Are you really going to sell us?”)
“Did you really believe I would climb the Christmas tree?”
“Yes, and in fact we were certain you would try to eat the lights as well. We did not have a Christmas tree that year or the next.”
Looking back in times, rediscovering the path and steps is wonderful, funny, and awesome. Who could have believed that two babies would now be wonderful young adults in the process of discovering who and what they are. How could we have anticipated just how much we would have changed? Is the growth that we have gone through automatic? From the sights around me I do not believe that is true.
As I look to the past I can see that “the very steps we take come from God; otherwise how would we know where we’re going?” (Proverbs 20.24) The decisions, choices, and turns are ours, yet the tugging of God is plain. Each has the opportunity to respond and to embrace the process of recreation. Our tentative, hesitant, and often blind steps reflect our answer to God’s offer of love and grace. With each “yes” we follow a path to full living! With each “no” the arms of unconditional acceptance and mercy reach out even further. Our steps are marked and laid out for us.
