I Want to Teach Him

I have a very original excuse for not blogging the last couple days.  I lent my mouse and keyboard to someone who needed it for some very important work.  I bet you've never heard that one before, eh?

My in-laws were in town visiting.  We had so much fun together.  I love my in-laws--they are amazing people and I want to grow up to be like them.  My father-in-law is a doctor and a while ago he went to a third-world country to volunteer.  This was the first time for us to see him after his trip so he did a little slideshow one of the nights we were together and showed us what his trip was like.  He mentioned a couple of cases where the patients' mothers refused to let their children receive treatments, I think it was mostly because they didn't understand that even though what the doctors were suggesting might sound terrifying but it was indeed the best thing for their children.  I was heartbroken.  Every mother wants the best for their children, especially a mother who had travelled who knows how far and had sacrificed who knows how much to get her child seen by volunteering doctors from America.  But because of their lack of understanding, their children are going to keep suffering.

That night after looking at all the pictures my father-in-law showed us, I laid in bed feeling very guilty.  I feel like I can do SO MUCH MORE to make this a better world.  You know?  I felt selfish that I've been so consumed in my own little world: getting all worked up because I couldn't decide on a main color for the master bedroom in our new house and spending half an eternity looking for the perfect computer/mommy station and the perfect chair to go with it and the perfect rug and kitchen hutch and light fixture and whatever.

I started thinking hard on what I can do to help others.  I think I'm going to start with Ethan.  I want to teach him to be kind.  I want to teach him to have compassion and to care about others.  I want to teach him that nothing you can buy with money in this world will ever make you as happy as when you've helped someone in need.  I want to teach him that no one is perfect unless you stop looking for their imperfections and start forgiving.  I want to teach him that yes he is important and yes he is a child of God but so is the next guy.