The Way of the Child

At Hogar de Ninos orphanage in Chila, Peru one day Alison called me her pappa and called my wife her momma. So when we were leaving I was pleasantly surprised at how well she did. I was thinking about what I would say to her if she asked me to take her with me. I'm sure I would have said that I can't and I expect that she would have asked me why. And I think there is no answer that would make any sense to her. Sure there are reasons like "adoption is not easy" and "it's expensive" and "I'm not sure my wife and I want that responsibility" and "I don't know Alison's story so maybe her parents are still in the picture" and "it would be hard for her to fit into our society". And maybe that's why Jesus said we must be like children to enter the Kingdom of God. To rationalize and weigh the pros and cons of a thing is not the way of the child. Children are either in or out; on or off; hot or cold - never lukewarm. Children are really good at living in each moment. They don't plan or worry about tomorrow. They "do today" really well. Alison gave me a card when I left that thanked me for the love I gave her. Well right back at you girl. You gave way more than I did. Thanks for the memory.