On the Shoulder
I’ve been trying to walk the boys through some Easter-related conversations during Lent. We sat down for yesterday’s conversation about MERCY in a perfect setting: each of us oceanside on a reclining chair, the late afternoon sun drooping towards the horizon, water from the Malacca Strait rolled over and over and over on the beach nearby.
Then … a flock of hungry hornbills gathered in the pine trees above us. The boys were more concerned about the imminent poop threat than Ephesians. One boy started making a stick pile pyramid in the grass. “How much longer?” another asked. “Can we go swimming?” was the answer to one of my Lenten questions. It was not a teacher’s perfect moment.
Still — an enduring memory from our few days at a Malaysian beach resort: three boys on my shoulder.
I don’t get a lot of intentional snuggling these days from our stable of young stallions … but these shoulder moments in the pool and in the ocean were sweet. And I celebrate the momentary gifts, known to — and surely cherished by — fathers of sons for time eternal.
Worth so much!