Monday, October 31, 2011

The Reluctant Adult



Fall Colors

Matthew 19:14 NIV
Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these."

The fall leaves had changed color. No longer vibrant shades of red, yellow, gold and orange, they began to look brown, tired, dying as they leaned from the tree limb eyeing the ground. Piles of wet leaves had blown into gutters on the narrow streets of the hilly subdivision. This was the time of year when the palette of colors fused into one wet, brown mess.

I followed behind my friend as we walked through the leaf-littered lawns of her neighborhood to knock on strangers' doors. I carried a pillow case and looked like a hobo. It was an easy costume to piece together that Halloween afternoon.

At age 14, I was on the cusp of being too old to demand candy from strangers. I avoided stares as adults tried to guess how old I was. I teetered between the world of child and grownup.

Soon I would enter adult responsibilities of handing out the candy. But today, this day, I wanted to be a child one day longer.

Tonight Allison and her friend, Wendy, are gathering candy from our neighbors. They are 14 years old, and like I once was, they are on the cusp of adulthood.  I smiled and teased them. Told them they are too old to go trick or treating. Both protested loudly.

The truth is, I'm glad to see them gathering candy. I'm not ready to have either one of them turn into adults. So today, this day, they can still be my little girls.
-------------------------------------
Lord, thank you for rites of passage that define our ages. Let the child in all of us enjoy the life you have given us.

No comments:

Post a Comment