A few days ago we needed to take some movies back to the library. We won't discuss the fact that they were late...it's a sore subject! Anyway, there were three movies and as we walked out the door the second born dutifully grabbed them and dropped them in the slot at said library.
Perfect!
Until later that evening when youngest born decided that she needed to watch said movie. Here is where a very dramatic and very pregnant pause happened.
Actually it might have been like the vacuum of a black hole as we all realized that said child didn't know we had returned her movie. We waited until we could wait no longer and I broke the news to her.
I wasn't prepared for her reaction. I was prepared for anger, frustration, storming off in irritation. Any of those I could have dealt with. But I should have known she wouldn't react like other kids...she's the one that cried when I gave her a movie!
So when I told her that her movie was gone she dissolved into tears. Her face distorted and she collapsed to the ground in front of me. She was bawling and saying "No, no, no" She wasn't being hateful or rude, she was genuinely distraught. Between her sobs she said, "I didn't even get to watch it."
Okay at that point I felt horrible. What could I say? The video was gone no hope of getting it back until the next day and the poor child was sobbing on the floor in front of me. I scooped her up and snuggled her desperately trying to think of something to say to get her to stop crying. By this time the rest of the girls came around to see why she was so upset. They don't like to see youngest born cry for any reason!
When each one came up to her she looked up at them and said, "Why would you take that movie back? I didn't even get to see it." Each time I would remind her that they didn't know she hadn't seen it and that they were just trying to do the right thing so we wouldn't get more fines.
A few minutes after the sisters dispersed, youngest born got down and bee-lined for the third born. I was prepared to come to the defense of the defenseless sister if she got to going on her but was shocked by what I heard. The youngest born walked up to each of her sisters and said this:
"I'm sorry I was mad at you in my heart. Will you forgive me?"
No one even knew she was mad. She didn't act on it, she didn't say anything to indicate that she was. But she knew she was and she knew that it wasn't justified. She came to that conclusion on her own and acted on her own to remedy the situation. Of course by the third time she did this, I was in tears!
Oh to have that tender of a heart to my own sin.
1 comment:
My heart is full knowing you got to hear that beautiful exchange!
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