Sometimes I get so caught up in the day to day, I don’t stop to think about what is really happening. That is why from time to time, little exchanges with my children catch me off guard as they remind me that they are growing up in a world that is vastly different from the one where we were raised. Many parts of this world are scary, so I consider them worse than when I was a child. Other parts are not better or worse; they are just different. Some of the differences have more to do with our geographical location than the changing times; being in a city affords much more diversity of people and activities than a rural setting like Greenville.
Audrey brought me back to this line of thinking a couple of days ago. We were driving home after a day of work/school, and we called Billy to determine our plans for the evening. You see, we had gotten back from the Lake the previous day and went to see our friends The Hoenigs for dinner. So, we didn’t really have anything to make for dinner at home. After a short discussion, we determined that we would go out to eat. I hung up the phone, and Audrey immediately started in with questions. I guess that is part of being three. She asks questions, primarily “Why?” and continues doing so until we change subjects, distract her, or tell her to stop asking questions. After answering her questions, I decided to direct a question back at her to put an end to the questions.
“What would you like to eat for dinner?” I asked.
Her response was short and simple. “Let's go to Bread Co. I want Mac’n’Cheese.”
I was immediately taken aback. I was shocked that she had deduced from her line of questioning that we were going out to eat; so when she answered my question she knew to respond with both a restaurant and a meal choice. I know that she is observant, but she is not just watching, she is also connecting the dots.
My shock quickly turned to questioning. Do we eat out too much? Do we go to St. Louis Bread Company (Panera for you out of towners) that often? Is this healthy, or are we teaching her bad habits by eating out as much as we do?
As I mulled over these questions, I slowly came to the point of comparing my upbringing with the way I am raising my children. When I was a child, eating out was a luxury that did not occur frequently. I think that was primarily due to the fact that there were not many restaurants to go to in and around Greenville, but eating out is also more expensive and often less healthy.
That lead me back to the question of whether our habit of eating out from time to time is one of those changes for the worse or if it is just different. I know it is a balance. Right now, as I return to work and we adjust to life with 2 children, we are trying to achieve balance with all of these new variables thrown in. It is a constant struggle to stay in balance, but this is where I have to turn once more to our heavenly Father. Whether the current world is better, worse, or the same as when I was a child doesn't matter. What matters is how we live now, and that we live for God. I will never be a perfect parent, and my children will never be perfect people. But that doesn't matter either, because that is not God's plan for us. He knows we are imperfect, sinful humans and that we will stumble, make bad choices, and fail to deserve his loving grace time and again. The beauty is that he loves us anyway. If we live for him, as much as we mess up, God will always offer us his grace and help us to turn back to him.
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