For the Children

Events happen every day of our lives. Some are small and barely noticeable. Some are significant. Each event, each encounter or conversation or moment can change us. I have been changed. Significantly.

I was changed as a child at the death of many family members and dear friends. I was changed as a young adult by poor choices. I was forever changed when I became a mom. I was painfully changed when my marriage ended. It all matters. It all left me different.

I have been changed once again. This time, as life moves on in new directions, I am left with a heart full of holes. So many tiny holes where I am missing the hands and hearts of the children I once served. It is as if my heart is leaking, unable to be filled. Unable to beat with a normal rhythm. Now my heart beats fast to try to compensate for the holes, or not at all in exhaustion. The steady rhythm is gone. The children were my heart. Their laughter was the rhythm. Their hugs held me together and their tears gave me strength to try again.

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Today I heard about a time when Jesus once asked his disciples to welcome a child. At that time, a child had no status in society and would not typically be invited anywhere. To welcome a child was to welcome the least significant in society. I will always welcome the child. The child is the heart of everything; the beginning; the life; the future.

I am truly blessed, and forever changed by the children who touched my life. Hundreds of children left their imprint on my heart. I will always remember their names, their faces, their questions and challenges and triumphs. They are what makes this world go ’round. The children are why we build and grow and discover and create. It is all for them. And one day they will do it for their children, and the cycle will continue. This is why we fight and why we love. If we forget that – if we lose that – if the child goes back to having no status – we become a world on a path to defeat.

I will not be defeated. I will serve for the child.