There is something about spending time with grandchildren that seems like a master class in wonder and awe. Raising children had those same courses available, and I still wonder at some of the experiences I experienced with my children, but I must admit that in the busyness of raising them, there was some wonder I missed. But, oh how I’m loving this stage. The wonder in a child’s eye, their imagination, spirit and unencumbered freedom. Thursday afternoon our son dropped off his two girls to spend some time with us. The weather was gorgeous, so it was medicine for the soul to spend some time outside. Louisa, who is two, loves to go “side” and five month old Eleanor was just along for the ride, but loves to watch her sister, so, we headed to the backyard where it was safe to just explore. Louisa spotted a Holly Bush with bright red berries that she just had to pick. I don’t think she even noticed that the sharp edges of the leaves and I didn’t want to squash her curiosity, so instead of telling her not to pick the berries, I told her she couldn’t eat them because they were food for the birds. She got so excited, picked a couple of berries, and ran to the back part of the yard.

When she arrived at her spot, she looked up, spotted the birds flying overhead, and jumped as fast and high as she could to give them her berries. For quite some time, she held on to the berries and with each passing flock of birds, she would holler “birds” and try again. Eventually, she gave up, dropped the berries, and headed down the path to gather sticks and pick flowers. We continued this fun trek until dark when she cried about going back in the house. Life gets so busy. We have our plans, calendars, to do lists and although nothing is wrong with these, at times we don’t leave space to stop and look in awe and look in wonder at what God has created for our enjoyment. My encouragement to us all is to stop, walk outside, listen for the birds, imagine the possibilities we can see if we allow our minds and eyes to see as a child sees.