Wednesday, July 28, 2010

I'm a Hypocrite


I tell my children to quickly forgive when their sibling sins against them, but I am slow to forgive when they sin against me. I have a high standard of cleanliness for their bedrooms, but I joke and make excuses why my room is seldom tidy.

I'm a hypocrite.
I took Chloe shopping with me yesterday and while I was checking out, she spotted a bag of shells that she was interested in. Shells and rocks are all the rage in the Clark house. She asked the clerk if she could look at them. Then she told the clerk how beautiful they were and handed them back. I surprised Chloe and bought them for her. Chloe gushed thankfulness. It doesn't take much to impress my kids.

As we were walking out of the store, she asked me to hold her shells for a minute. When I took them from her, they fell to the concrete, breaking several. I was crushed and Chloe was clearly deflated. I said: "Oh Chloe, I am so sorry!"
Chloe quickly said: Oh it's ok, Mom, it's just a few shells.

I looked at her in awe. How quick she was to forgive me. I was humbled.

2 comments:

Rachel Marie said...

what an encouraging moment to see that attitude of grace in your child! humbling though it may be!
I'd LOVE to hear you weigh in on my latest post!!!

Anonymous said...

It always amazes me how quickly children forgive. I've had moments where I just wanted to hold Emily as I cried for hours and begged her forgiveness. She, on the other hand, had already forgiven, forgotten, and was ready to move on with playing. Sometimes now she'll say, "It's ok, Mommy. Acci-didn'ts happen. I forgive you."

Yep, humbling indeed!