Mom and I went downtown on a shopping trip. I was just six or seven at the time, but I was a little girl on a mission – to find my dad the perfect birthday present. Not such an easy task when you think about how limited my funds were back then, but I was hopeful. As I scanned the shelves of knick-knacks and trinkets which were in my price range, I suddenly grew excited. My eyes had locked onto a little colorful plaque that I knew would be just perfect for my dad. I giggled as I read it and couldn’t wait for his birthday to come so I could see his face when he opened it. My mother smilingly approved so we purchased the gift and took it home.
Dad’s big day finally arrived. We had our dinner and dessert and then…it was present time! I was a little bundle of hyper excitement as I placed the wrapped gift in my dad’s hands. He smiled at me and wondered what it could be. I watched his face as he tore the paper, took out the plaque, turned it over and read it. He turned to my mother and said, “You put her up to this, didn’t you?” To which my sweet mother laughingly replied, “Nope! She picked that out all by herself!” I was so pleased and excited, but as my dad looked at me he wasn’t laughing but rather he had a look that said, “Gee, thanks!”
You might be wondering what on earth was on that innocent little plaque. Well, I’ll show you because I found one almost exactly like it online. (They must still be in demand.) Here it is…
Cute, isn’t it? For some reason, though, my dad wasn’t nearly as amused by it as I was (or my mother, for that matter.) To my dad’s credit, he put the little plaque on the dresser in he and mom’s bedroom where it stayed for years.
In my dad’s defense, I must say that he is a wonderful man and I have so many fond memories of good times with him. He is an excellent husband, father, and grandfather and I wouldn’t trade him for the world! But the point is, children can be very perceptive, sometimes painfully so. When they look at us as parents, what do they see?
As homeschoolers, we are under a lot of pressure (much of which is self-induced) and it can cause us to be more irritable, short-tempered, impatient or unkind than we intend to be with our children. Maybe it would be a good thing if we received a little plaque to put on our dresser to serve as a humble reminder to us. It is true that we are not perfect, however, sometimes when we are at home with our little ones around the clock, it can become too easy to let our guard down and before we know it, we are not trying very hard to be as pleasant, cheerful and patient as we should be.
If you were to ask each of your kids to honestly describe you, what would they say? Would their answers be a little painful or uncomfortable? Maybe it is an indicator of an area in your life that needs a little fine tuning and improvement. I know kids can drive you crazy, and they are experts at knowing exactly which buttons to push and when, but I also know that they are precious treasures that have been entrusted to our care by the Lord. They grow up so fast and then there is no more time to mold, shape, and train them. You are done. Look at each day as an opportunity to enjoy the company of your children and embrace the opportunities God gives you to teach them. Maybe your kids will grow up to describe you in the same way that a lovely lady was described by her epitaph – “She always made home happy.” At the very least, that is certainly worth striving for.
My little birthday present to my dad started out as a joke but turned into a little daily reminder – your child is always watching you. What do they see?