So, kids can be mean
to each other in any culture or language.
The fact of this doesn’t surprise me, but I had to deal with it
firsthand this morning. It has
been rainy and cloudy here in Cusco, which during the winter season,
translates to really cold weather.
We “extranjeros” tend to not dress our children very warmly- or at least
compared to the bundled ones here.
I wanted to keep Anna Grace warm for school today, so I opted for a turtleneck and
sweater. She gave me a “look” and
said she really didn’t want to wear the turtleneck. I eventually got out of her that the last time she wore that
shirt, a little classmate told her that only babies wear shirts like that.
What?!?!?
Inside I
was fuming- I was thinking how am I going to approach that little
girl to say, “You don’t have a clue about fashion.” And why did it happen to Anna Grace- my sweet, sensitive child
that wouldn’t think of saying something like that… why not Eliza- who would
probably reply with something real smart like “Your mom’s a baby,” kick the
girl in the shin, and not give it another thought.
I looked in Anna
Grace’s eyes and told her that if anyone says something like that to her, that
she should correct them with “No, it’s cute!” That she needs to stand up for herself because God has made
her beautiful inside and out, he loves her and thinks she’s very special. (Not sure about the teaching here- yes, we turn the cheek, but we also don't want our children to become doormats. I want her to understand that she has intrinsic value because she has been made in the image of God.)
After breakfast, I was
still bothered by the entire thing, so I mentioned that this little girl wasn’t
being a good friend. With all
sincerity, Anna Grace looked at me and said, “Yes, she is, Mom.” “What?” I asked, “How can that be? She said unkind things to you.” She replied, “Yes, Mom, but Jesus can
change her heart.” Whoa. Talk
about lessons learned from our children.
Sometimes it is hard
to love the people here- at times they are unkind to us or try to take
advantage of us, other times, we are just really different (one is not right or
wrong, but just black & white different). But Jesus came to tear down these walls and open our eyes to
our limited view of how we love others.
People change- not by their own volition, but by the grace of God. Jesus can go straight to the root of
our issues- to our heart- and change it.
He’s doing it in my life, the life of my sweet daughter Anna Grace, and
in the lives of the people we’ve come here to love.
So thankful for the
lesson learned this morning- thank you "profe" Anna Grace.
