Courage
Courage comes in all shapes and sizes. I’ve seen it on kids trembling from head to toe after being bullied at school. Though shaking from the effects, they gather their gumption to relay what happened as best they can. What do they hope to gain? Some measure of understanding certainly. Why did that happen? What does it say about me? Where do I put it inside myself? Understanding can shed light on these. But understanding can’t give what they ultimately want. Something they want bad enough to risk being seen.
Openness
While lying in bed this morning thinking of the progression of curiosity, it occurred to me that curiosity is impossible without an open heart. Even though that is an obvious sentence, the implications are profound. Following that breadcrumb trail into the forest of my thinking finds the thought that I’m pretty sure I’m open – open-minded, open-hearted, open home…open! And here’s where curiosity kicked in: “Yeah, I am pretty open as a rule. But I wonder where or when I’m not?”
Curiosity
“Do you want to know what your besetting sin is?” My long-term mentor asked this as he walked into the kitchen where I was stirring lunch. Hearing the question, my stomach tightened, body braced, and I had a strong urge to get overly engrossed stirring the soup. Lifting my eyes to his I found him patiently waiting for my answer. No censure. No hurry. Just a kind of waiting to see what I would and could receive just then. “Yes.” I nodded my head as I said the word and held my breath.
Heart Habits – Nurture
The child struggled. Concentration furrowed his brow. Over and over he tried until frustration started to get the best of him. Finally, he sighed as if failure was inevitable. The adult watched and waited to see what would happen next. Would the kid try again? Ah, yes! He’s moving toward it…but at the last second pulled back. The adult breathed deeply. What would be nurtured in this child? What could be nurtured in his heart?
Community
“At first, I thought you were kind of a snob.” These words were directed at me. Me. And everything inside me said, That’s absurd. I’m no snob, I’m just quiet. And defensiveness kicked into full gear. Others in the group quickly came to my rescue. “Jeff, you don’t say that to someone! Come on, we’re supposed to be encouraging each other!” So Jeff quickly apologized to me, more than once, and our team meeting moved on.
God
It was one of those days. The kind that weighs you down and makes everything feel hard. So I took our boys on an outdoor adventure—for sanity’s sake. We needed a break from the house, from structure, from each other. I decided to find a new nature preserve for a hike. Once there, we opened the van doors and immediately smelled the strong scent of pine.
