By Emilie Plants | Contributing Writer
There’s nothing more precious to me than seeing my children sing about God.
Joyful Hearts Preschool has taught both of my children about Jesus and has given them the platform to sing His praises.
On the last day before Thanksgiving, it was Cooper’s turn to perform as an American Indian and retell the Thanksgiving story with his classmates.
His class performed an American Indian call as they marched around a makeshift teepee, while another class portrayed the Pilgrims and rode in on their own homemade Mayflower. The American Indians taught the Pilgrims to grow their own food, and in exchange, the two different groups became friends.
They sang and did hand motions to tunes about turkeys, Indians, Thanksgiving dinner and giving thanks in everything, which came from 1 Thessalonians 5:18.
Cooper’s tiny little hands were hard at work and brought joy to my heart as he folded them in prayer at the conclusion of their production.
I couldn’t help but remember that, only days ago, those same sweet hands got ahold of a red permanent marker and drew a Ms. Pac Man ghost, among other scribbles, on the footstool to my rocking chair.
At the time, my face was as red as those marks. My husband even took him and his sister for a trip to the store to give mom a much-needed breather and also to buy Lift-Off in hopes that it would remove the markings. (Luckily, the footstool is good as new.)
As I watched my son say, “In everything, give thanks,” I wondered if it is really possible to give thanks in everything? Really, God? Everything?
I wasn’t giving thanks for the picture my son had drawn me on my $200 rocking chair. That rocking chair is the same one that I used to rock both of my babies. It is more than just a chair. It is a sentimental piece of my life.
After much thought, I realize now that even those permanent marks could have given me a reason to be thankful.
Cooper is a perfectly healthy child with the use of his hands. There are some children without the ability to draw. He has an amazing imagination and creativity that shined in that Ms. Pac Man ghost that will one day serve him well in life. Some children aren’t born with such powerful thinking.
One day, I will turn around, and that little boy will be all grown up. On a particularly lonely day, I may even wish I could wake up to those pen marks just to have him by my side.
Too many times, I have wiped handprints off my windows without a heart of Thanksgiving. I see stains on the carpets and furniture daily and grumble to myself.
I am so thankful for the lessons that Cooper taught me on this day. That precious angel, who waved from the stage and said, “Hi Mom,” opened my eyes and heart to what really matters.
He drew permanent marks on my heart that will never fade.
Emilie Plants, a Plant City native, is a stay-at-home mother of two, freelance journalist and a former Florida Strawberry Festival Queens Court member.