Saturday, November 15, 2008

Special. So special.

Right after school started this year, one of my favorite little buddies was sad everyday they went to school. Being the mother hen-ish type, I did NOT like hearing about this. I don't like seeing anyone sad, especially my closest buddies!! So, one weekend, I had them go shopping with me to pick up supplies to make a very special bracelet.

This bracelet was going to help them to not be so sad. Whenever they saw it on their arm, they were going to think about all of their closest family members, and the fun and happy times they have together.

We spent extra time on it and made sure it was arranged perfectly. Perfectly! After we finished it, there were smiles ALL over the place! And, I mean all over the place. They wore that bracelet EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. And, it got rid of all the yucky sadness that comes along with missing someone.

Well, Friday afternoon I answered the phone and heard my little buddy say, "Janet?" Sniffle, sniffle, sniffle, cry. I said, "what's wrong?" They said (through the sniffles and tears), "um, I was playing with one of my friends and they pulled on my bracelet and it broke." I said, "don't you worry about that, it's okay!" They said, through the tears, "no, it's not okay. It's broken. I don't have all the pieces. I can't get it back. It was just so special!!!!" So, I said, "we can make another one, don't you be upset about it. It was an accident and I'm sure your friend didn't mean for it to happen. What do you say we just make another one? A BETTER one?!" I heard that smile coming back on my little buddy's face and said, "Ooooookkkaaaaaaaay, but it will have to be EXACTLY like the other one, so I will forget about the other one getting broken."

To be honest, I didn't think much about this call at all. Until a little while ago. I was thinking about the little words of a child. They just struck me as being SO entirely powerful. Coming straight from the heart. "No, it's not okay. It's broken. I don't have all the pieces. I can't get it back. It was just so special." How many times, as adults, do we let simple, innocent moments fly right past us and not think twice? How many times do we think that when something is broken, it cannot be fixed and we cannot get it back? Are you "okay" with the broken things in your life? Do you feel hopeless? Why not gather up the millions of broken pieces that you can find and give it to the one who can fix it? The creator of the universe, the creator of everything, the creator of YOU. Try it. Just once, you might be surprised.

Do you know what the cool lesson is I've learned from this? Even a child recognizes the importance and value of the simple things. It was NOT the BRACELET that mattered, but it was the PURPOSE of the bracelet. Think about it.........

3 comments:

susan said...

janet.. i so loved this story! i needed to hear this today. it was very appropriate for me. thanks! keep up the good work. it's reaching out farther than you know:)

Anonymous said...

Janet, I have been trying to remember to check your blog here every so often! This post was very thoughtful and I enjoyed it. I agree that, as adults, we often have broken things in our lives. But, it has been my observation that sometimes there is a good reason that something is broken. Also, what one party thinks is broken, the other party thinks is fine. I have plenty of examples of this, but I won't bore you with them here! Keep those thoughtful posts coming!

-Tim

Anonymous said...

Janet this was great! I think I connect with your words even more since I have a special buddy or two myself :) Your words help to put things in perspective and remember the important things...Thanks for that!!