Say it like it is

I volunteer in Goosie's class every week. Last week his teacher (acting as assistant principal) had some matters to attend to and was out of the room for a while. When she came back I told her that I had given Goose more chewing gum to help him focus. I asked her a few questions about how his week had been and then added, "I'm not sure if he's been like this because I am here, or if he's been like this for you, but he is being a brat today!" (This was all said in private with no little ears listening.) She chuckled and said, "I love that you just say it how it is, and you don't sugar coat it!"

It was truth, my son was truly being a brat. Would I ever say that to him personally? Heavens no! But the fact was, he was NOT on his best behavior and I was not impressed. I was not going to pretend that he wasn't behaving poorly, nor would I say it was provoked by another child.

Mrs. M's comment got me thinking though. I do say it how it is. Sometimes I probably shouldn't, but luckily it doesn't get me into too much trouble.

It also made me think about a time when good friends of ours were going through a series of very difficult trials. They were unemployed with no prospects, their young daughter was suffering medically and they had no answers, and they had been selected to adopt another baby only to find out about a week later that the birth mother miscarried. These were just a few of their struggles. My heart ached for them. They were (and still are) some the most faith-filled, righteous people that we know and none of it seemed fair. I struggled with what to say. What DO you say!? I did not personally understand... at all. I also knew that they had gotten all of the sympathy that they could handle, and that it was not what they needed from us. As I thought about it over and over, all that I could come up with was that their situation, and sometimes life, simply sucks! Knowing that this family used humor to help heal, I went to work. There was a teeny, tiny part of me that worried that they wouldn't find it as helpful as I intended, but I pushed it aside and kept going.

After and hour, I was left with a mason jar full of lollipops with this note attached...

Thankfully, this was just what our friends needed. It made them laugh! In that moment, I wasn't going to sugar coat it. It wasn't my place to say that everything would work out. It WAS my place to be a true friend, and support them the best way that I knew how.

There are times (like the present) that I want to blow up part of this picture and hang it on our wall. Life is not always enjoyable. It is hard and definitely sucks sometimes. That is reality and it is okay. But we all need to  have faith and hope that our situation will improve, and THAT is what we need to focus on.  

Face the facts, but do not dwell on them!

Here is hoping that you can kindly and gently see things how they really are today!

Love,

Hills