Just the other day I had the neatest experience. It was about 7a.m. on a school morning. I was sitting in the dark, in the bathroom having a quiet moment. Now don’t get red in the face. I am not being crude. I was really just sitting in the bathroom in the dark. To be precise, I was sitting on the edge of the bathtub. The rest of the house was waking and stirring and no one knew where I was. That is until my 4 year old woke up. I could hear her meandering around the house. Her sounds dissipated into the kitchen and I knew she was with her mother. My mind was able to drift back off to the place it was before. I’m not sure how long it was before the door slowly swung open and her beaming face poked in to find me. I put her on my lap and we did the traditional “Good Morning” hugs and kisses. Then she promptly slid off my lap, grabbed my fore finger in each hand and began to pull. I thought she was playing with me at first so I kinda’ put her off. She grabbed my fingers and started pulling again.
“C’mon Dad!” she said emphatically.
Getting the message, I let her pull me out of hiding, thru the dining room and into the kitchen where my wife was making breakfast.
My little girl pulled me over next to my wife and demanded, “Daddy…love Mommy!”
I obliged her. I wrapped my arms around my wife, nuzzled her neck and kissed her.
“How’s that”? I asked.
“Do it again!” was the reply
This time my wife wheeled around and gave me a more passionate kiss. My twin boys entered the kitchen hiding their eyes. My 16 year old passed by and muttered something about “…get a room…” With her heart satisfied, my little girl left the room to move on with her day.
My wife and I have always displayed our affection in front of our children. We have also lavished our affection on them. To this day, we hug, embrace, kiss and tell each other “I love you” before we say “…goodnight”. We say “I love you” when we leave each other. I can’t imagine life any other way. And I have always wanted my boys to know that I love their mother. I have tried to show it with my words, actions and affections.
I do this so that it will be common for them to show affection to their wives. I do this so that they can cultivate a relationship with their wives that will be strong and not end in divorce. I do this for my grandchildren who aren’t even born yet. I do this for my wife, so that she will feel loved and know that I am not ashamed of her. I do this to honor her in front of my children. And yes, I do this for me. I love loving her. I am proud that she is my wife.
I don’t know what was going on in my 4 year old’s mind, but it was obvious that her day wasn’t going to start until she saw daddy loving mommy. I have to admit, it is a great way to start the day! As great and as important as all that is….for all the same reasons….I want them to catch me loving God.
“C’mon Dad!” she said emphatically.
Getting the message, I let her pull me out of hiding, thru the dining room and into the kitchen where my wife was making breakfast.
My little girl pulled me over next to my wife and demanded, “Daddy…love Mommy!”
I obliged her. I wrapped my arms around my wife, nuzzled her neck and kissed her.
“How’s that”? I asked.
“Do it again!” was the reply
This time my wife wheeled around and gave me a more passionate kiss. My twin boys entered the kitchen hiding their eyes. My 16 year old passed by and muttered something about “…get a room…” With her heart satisfied, my little girl left the room to move on with her day.
My wife and I have always displayed our affection in front of our children. We have also lavished our affection on them. To this day, we hug, embrace, kiss and tell each other “I love you” before we say “…goodnight”. We say “I love you” when we leave each other. I can’t imagine life any other way. And I have always wanted my boys to know that I love their mother. I have tried to show it with my words, actions and affections.
I do this so that it will be common for them to show affection to their wives. I do this so that they can cultivate a relationship with their wives that will be strong and not end in divorce. I do this for my grandchildren who aren’t even born yet. I do this for my wife, so that she will feel loved and know that I am not ashamed of her. I do this to honor her in front of my children. And yes, I do this for me. I love loving her. I am proud that she is my wife.
I don’t know what was going on in my 4 year old’s mind, but it was obvious that her day wasn’t going to start until she saw daddy loving mommy. I have to admit, it is a great way to start the day! As great and as important as all that is….for all the same reasons….I want them to catch me loving God.
