It's been a rough couple of weeks around here. My daughter's diabetes has been acting up and it's been putting us through the ringer. There have been a lot of nights with very little sleep and my daughter feeling really yucky while I did everything I could to try to keep her from having to go to the emergency room. Not fun. Not fun at all.
In our house, we have a two-story entryway and my daughter's bedroom door is right next to the railing upstairs. My daughter has figured out how to use this to her advantage. When she's been sent to her room, she likes to write notes then throw them over the railing for me to find on the ground. Lovely, caring notes. Yeah. (See here, here and here.) Then the other day, I found this one...
That one broke my heart.
It was time to have a talk.
She snuggled into my lap and I asked her about the note. She told me that she hated having diabetes and she wished she could be like "normul" people. I told her that I hated that she got stuck with diabetes, too, but there really isn't anyone who's normal. God made each and every one of us to be different and unique. We all have special gifts that He's given us. We all have burdens, too, but how we face these things makes us who we are. She's been so brave facing her burdens and I've been so proud of her for it! The way she's faced them makes her gifts shine more brightly. I told her that I hoped she never tried to be normal, but would always let the gifts that God has given her shine through.
She's 8 years old now. I wonder how many more times we'll be having this conversation in the years to come. I still have to have this conversation with myself from time to time. Wouldn't it be nice if we could see ourselves the way God sees us?
