The Heart: 2 Tickers & 1 Tea Time

My heart says of you, 'Seek his face!'...

Heart Ticker #1:  On a recent amusement park visit, a Mom and Dad with three young children are in a quandary at the elephant ride. Each young child must be accompanied by an adult. He (and none of his family) will be able to ride the longed-for, colorful, flying elephants because of too few adults. My husband observes as the poor little 3-year-old breaks into tears.

This sounds odd, but my wife is riding one of the elephants, solo. She would be glad to accompany your little boy, my husband says.

The family energetically agrees. It leads to my ride with a stranger. I let him choose the red elephant, although the purple one was my preference. I follow his lead and gladly enjoy his red elephant world. I let him press and release the magic flight button for us both. I say, Up, up, up! and then Down, down, down!

I learn his name, Tate, and that he recently had his third birthday. That is all as we enjoy his little world. We fly in circles on red Dumbo, and Tate presses the lever to go up, up, up and down, down, down.

Heart Ticker #2:  My youngest grandson is a bulldog physically. To wrestle a diaper onto his in-motion body takes courage and strength. Each evening he enjoys his bath-time by reaching for everything in sight. When he daringly stands, it is time for the towel-dry cycle. Maybe he can air dry and go naked tonight? Nnnaaa! The battle is on.

We head to his bedroom for the Sumo diaper wrestle. Tonight's strategy is to distract, be fast, and voila! I haul him to the rocker, take a few deep breaths, and successfully set one towel-dried, diapered and pj'd 10-month-old onto my welcoming lap.

He is finally somewhat still as I reach for the book Baby's Colors. On this particular long-distance visit, four evenings in a row I read this same book to him. Tonight when he sees the book, before I even begin to read, he turns to me with a delighted look on his face. As page one is opened, using expressive, high-pitched baby talk I read aloud, Baby!Sees!Red!!!

Again he turns to me, eyes wide, and his entire body giggles. With each page, he eagerly reacts the same as I enter into his exciting little world of red, yellow, blue, green, orange and pink.

Teapot Time:  I drink tea all day long, every day. It is no exception during my visits with long-distance grandchildren. My pot of tea steeps throughout the day. My grandson knows this and recently maximized on the idea with a thrift store purchase of a Fisher Price teapot with two tea cups. As he tips the pot, the realistic sound of pouring tea occurs. "DeDe, outside... tea!!"

A 3 1/2-year-old wants company and enters into my big adult world of tea time. He knows my love for it and draws me outside with him to the front porch step. Never mind that pretend tea time lasts only mere minutes. I embrace it. Then bug searching time begins. That's alright.

"DeDe, ...outside... tea!"

It melts me every time, and I respond. My grandson's heart seeks my face and he joins my tea time. I'm there. On the front step. Sipping tea with him, and then I watch and help him as he searches for roly polys and ants.

...Your face, Lord, I will seek (Psalm 27:4,7-8). 
And then, won't God, too, intuitively help me to uncover those most intriguing bugs?

This parallel sounds overly simplistic as I shift thoughts to ask: Do I initiate time with God and attempt to enter into His big world? or, Does my little world of endless requests take over? What partnering image ["teapot"] emerges for mutual "tea time" with THE One who loves and knows me better than any one ever could?