I Will Never Fire You. . .

My mother. . . She is such a special lady. Her heart is for others. Selfless. For as long as I can remember she has lived outside herself, outside her comfort zone, outside our family, outside our social class. She has allowed no barriers in her work for God. Throughout my years growing up under her model, she has volunteered in too many ways to tell - everything from teaching a poor elderly man to read his first words to mentoring young girls in an inner-city elementary school. You see, her mother was the same way. My grandma in her 80's was still volunteering at the hospital, teaching a young hispanic girl English in an afterschool program, and hosting Bible studies in her home. And, I pray that I, too, will model this ministry of giving of myself to others, and that my sons will model it for their children. This is a legacy worth protecting.

This weekend my mother gave of herself by coming and watching my boys so that Erik and I could get away. I am so thankful for the time she gave us. She will never know how grateful I am! She works my home like a well-oiled machine. I came home to a house full of happy boys, new toys, and 4 loads of fresh clean laundry. She had taken them on a variety of fun outings. And, today they have been asking for Nana all day. I wonder why?

I called her mid-way through the weekend, and I asked what they were up to. . .

She said, "Well, I think we are going to go back to Wal-Mart."
So, I asked, "Why, you already went once?"
Mom said, "Well, Joshua needs something. . ."
I had to ask, "What?"
She answered, "Well, we got these engines (Thomas trains), and he needs some more. . ."
I quickly replied, "No, he doesn't. You are spoiling him. . ."
To which she asked, "If I spoil him, are you going to fire me?"

Joshua obviously overheard our conversation and pondered it for a while. Later at Wal-Mart Joshua and Nana had this conversation. . .

Out of the Blue, in the toy section of Wal-Mart, Joshua says: "Nana, don't just worry about Mommy firing you. . .Daughters can't fire mothers. . . Mommy won't fire you. . . She wouldn't do that. . ." My mom at this point thought he knew what being fired meant. . .

Then, he finished his thought. "Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego got fired. But, they disobeyed the king. . . Mommy isn't going to fire you. . . Don't just worry about it."

Thanks Mommy, for giving me a rare weekend alone with my love. And, don't just worry - I will never fire you!