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| 16 years old in this summer pic |
was about 5 years old, she taught me a couple of great lessons.
Mary Grace was my sole passenger on a routine errand through our small town. She was buckled in the back seat on a sunny day when we pulled up behind a car stopped at a stop sign just down the road from our house. I could see that the drivers of the car in front of us were gray headed.
[Pause]
Think about those times you've had to follow the car being driven by a senior citizen...I was thinking those same things at that moment.
Hoping they'd be going straight, but seeing them turn right (the same turn I needed to make), I let out an audible sigh as we began to follow them down the straightaway. Sure enough, they were speeding along at 15 mph in a 30 mph zone. I started to let out a few words, like, "Oh great. This would be my luck. It'll take 30 minutes to get to the next turn."
Thankfully though, I remembered that a little person was right behind me, and caught myself before the words escaped. Instead, I tried to curb my frustration and I pieced together, "Wow. They must really be enjoying the scenery!"
My little girl didn't say anything to that. She just kept riding along. Five minutes later, as we were slowing down to stop at another stop sign, a little voice piped up from the back seat and said, "You know, I'm kind of enjoying the scenery, too."
Glory, that baby girl taught me a thing or two right then.
She reinforced a quote (yay, another quote!) I've heard many times over the years.
Think before you speak.
True. True. And very true.
However, what stopped me and made me immediately thankful that I had not let my whining reflex words out was the realization that I really had power to shape how she saw a situation. What a great gift that is! What a great responsibility that is!
And it still is both those things, all these years later.
I am grateful, today, for that needed and important reminder.
I am grateful, today, for that sweet scenery enjoying girl!
Blessings,
Shelley
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