Kisses from a 5 year old

Yesterday, I think, was a break-through day. I have been nannying for 4 girls all summer--12, 10, 8, & 5. I will call them Niecy, Annie, Abe, and Mouse. All summer my little Mouse has not seemed to have any sort of affection for me, and I think it is just because she misses her mom, and, well I am pretty firm with her and don't let her get away with much!

Well, yesterday, Niecy, Mouse and I had some time with just the 3 of us. We went to Anthropologie, where they insisted (to my delight!) that I try something on. As we left Anthropologie, Niecy lamented how she wished that she could skip high school and college so that she could be as old as me and live on her own and drive around and go shopping with her friends whenever she wanted to. I smiled, and I told her that being on my own was fun but it is hard too. She asked, "Do you wish you were still in college? Like do you think college was the best time of your life?"

I said, "Well, Dr. C always says that the best time of your life is right now. Whatever you are doing right now, wherever you are, that should be the best time. When I was in college, I didn't enjoy it as much as I should have. I couldn't wait to get out. I love where I am in life NOW, but I wish that when I was in college I had enjoyed the relaxed schedule more."

So at this point we are in the car and driving. My little Mouse chimes in from the back seat, "I know why you should enjoy where you are right now! Because God is always with you! So you should never be lonely or afraid." I smiled and said that, yes, she is right.

Then Niecy said, "Well, I just wish that I could not go to college." I asked her why. "Because it is going to be really hard and I'll be really stressed and then I won't have my friends and family around to help me so I'll be lonely." I told her she could live at home and go to college, but she didn't like that idea too much either. As we were discussing this conundrum, Mouse chimed in from the back seat again...excuse me, YELLED from the back seat, "Niecy!! Were you not listening to me?!?! You should never be scared or lonely because you always have someone with you!! God is always with you!!!!!!"

From the mouths of babes. I have to admit I laughed with delight at this remark and the earnestness with which she expressed it, and I told her that she was absolutely right.

So when we got home we decided to go swimming. We were in the pool and I was swimming with my little Mouse, and I asked her if she wanted to play a game. We played this pretend game for a little while, where I would give her a noun, say, a flower, and ask her what kind of secret said noun would tell if it could. We took turns and we were both cracking up, and then she said, "I want to swim to you!" So I backed up, and she swam to me and jumped up and gave me a kiss on the cheek! This is a big deal, because, as I said, she has not been too openly affectionate with me. Anyway, throughout the afternoon I got about 3 more kisses.

I was thinking about how they were like kisses from God in a way. God has a way of speaking truth into my life through children, and today he reminded me of his affection and of the fact that he IS always with me, so I never have to be lonely or afraid.