As I led the group of teens to my weekly alternative prayer art and meditation service, I was shocked to find that I had an unexpected attendee: my 14 year old daughter. Miraculous! Why, you might ask, is this a miracle? Because at camp, she does not want to publicly acknowledge that I am her mom. She has never signed up for art as an elective. She barely talks to me in public (except when she needs something). Need I say more?It was enough of a miracle that she chose to come with her friends to my class, so what followed was an even bigger shocker: she opened up about her feelings in front of the group. At home, I find it difficult to squeeze more than a few words out of her or to get her to open up about what's going on for her on just about any topic. So, when the group began to share their hopes and fears, she was one of the first to contribute, and I cherished every word that came out of her mouth.
I was blown away by the many profound deep thoughts that I heard this morning. One of the teens described that the bold strokes in her painting represented the experiences she looks forward to in high school next year. The black strokes that she interspersed were for the failures that she anticipates, which she expressed as an important part of her experience. She was looking forward to both! Wow, it took me many more decades to learn the important life lesson of including failure as a gift.
To close the session, I had the kids think of something they wanted to manifest in their lives. We discussed the importance of intention, how our thoughts determine the actions we take and the subsequent outcome of our lives. Each kid had a private thought that they then took with them to begin their day.
My lesson today is that it is good to be patient and not take things personally. If I took it personally and was angry every time my daughter ignored me or kept things inside, I would probably not have experienced today's miracle. I am celebrating that I had the patience and the perspective that things would eventually shift. I kept my heart open, and I received a lovely gift.
What miracles are happening in your life?
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Oh my goodness! What a lovely miracle! Having 2 daughters of my own, I totally understand the significance of your miracle. My two are 22 and 24 and I wish I had known what I know now, but then they probably would not have turned out to be the beautiful girls they are today. Thank you for sharing your miracle with us!
ReplyDeleteHey Pat,
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing of your own two beautiful daughters and the miracle that lies within. It is interesting what you say about hindsight, if you knew then what you know now..
You've gotten me to thinking about the significance of hindsight.
New blog entry??
Thanks for the inspiration and for appreciating the beauty of your lovely girls.