A Heart Like a Child

I love kids. That's probably a good thing, considering I want to be a teacher for the rest of my life. But seriously: I love kids.

Yes, they're sticky, overwhelming, exhausting, and needy. But they are also so trusting, so loving, so eager, so gentle, and so innocent. They're simple. They find joy in a tootsie roll, a slide, a happy meal, or a story with silly pictures. They don't stress. They just simply are. They live life moment by moment, enjoying the moments instead of worrying about the next one.

Being around them is refreshing. They make life worth it... because of their simple love of living.

It's often from their simple questions, or simple passion, or simple answers that we learn the most. They don't know how to philosophize. They don't know how to metaphoricalize (yes. that's a made up word). They don't know how to hide things and plaster on a fake facade to make people think they're ok. They're just blunt and honest.

Sometimes a child's honesty hurts. Like when they tell you that the lesson you spent so long planning was boring. Like when they tell you that they don't like reading. Like when they tell you that your hair looks funny or your breath smells bad. And sometimes, it hurts because they teach us things that we still don't get. Like the simple idea of "trust and obey."

When you tell most kids to do something, they'll do it simply because you're the boss. Sometimes they might ask why, but they don't usually sit around questioning and philosophizing about why you just asked them to read the next paragraph or put their toys away... they don't make t-charts of pros and cons about eating their peas. They might resist a little, but in the end (usually without too much of a hassle) they'll do it.

I love observing first grade classrooms. I come in, walk around the room, work with a few kids, and by the end of the day I have a stack of hearts drawn on construction paper expressing their love for me. Some may say it's naive. Perhaps. But it is also beautiful. Trust.

So. I'm trying to learn from these precious children. I'm tired of overthinking things. I'm tired of rationalizing and wrestling. What if I just simply trusted? Simply loved because He loved me first? Simply obeyed because I trust Him more. Because He's the boss and loves me and sees what I don't yet see. Oh the freedom that would bring! How I long for the heart of a child. The simplicity to trust. The simplicity to obey.