All,
Someone on this thread believed that all wisdom is in the Bible, and was vehement in asking what and how the world would teach me. This is my belated answer.
The Empty Gold Box
This vignette is from the book HOME WITH A HEART by James Dobson.
We often learn the most from our children.
Some time ago, a friend of mine punished his 3 year old daughter for wasting a roll of gold wrapping paper. Money was tight, and he became infuriated when the child tried to decorate a box to put under the Christmas tree. Nevertheless, the little girl brought the gift to her father the next morning, and said, "This is for you, Daddy."
He was embarassed by his earlier overreaction, but his anger flared again when he found that the box was empty.
He yelled at her, "Don't you know that when you give someone a present, there's supposed to be something inside of it?"
The little girl looked up at him with tears in her eyes and said, "Oh, Daddy, it's not empty. I blew kisses into the box. All for you, Daddy."
The father was crushed. He put his arms around his little girl, and he begged her for forgiveness. My friend told me that he kept that gold box by his bed for years. Whenever he was discouraged, he would take out an imaginary kiss and remember the love of the child who had put it there.
In a very real sense, each of us as parents, has been given a gold container filled with unconditional love & kisses from our children. There is no more precious possession anyone could hold.
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May your golden box always be full, and when you see that it is empty, may the christ child within you remind you that it is 'not' empty, but full of light.
Peace,
Darrin |
