Kid Pics

I snatched the opportunity to take pictures of the kids the other day. They were dressed for the Christmas Eve church service. The older they get, the more they warm my heart, and the more I adore seeing them together.

Julia is holding Philip's mug of hot green tea with honey, useful in soothing his voice before he sang "O Holy Night" at the service, with the Men's Chorus in the background. It was beautiful.

I have to admit, I really wanted a picture of my two boys together. They're such young men now. They're finally beginning to really enjoy each other's company, although they're very different. They've been playing ping-pong the past few days, and have carried on a fierce rivalry in Scrabble, which they play on Philip's new small computer machine. I don't even know what it's called. It kind of looks like a Kindle, but isn't one.

Soon Peter will be graduated and gone, and I'll only have them together occasionally. I know we raise them to let them go, but it's simply hard not to be able to see them more. Hard to explain, but I know that all other parents with grown kids will understand. I'm trying to enjoy these days as much as possible. Anna leaves for college next Monday, and then we'll soon return to our new "normal."

There's much debate about having children. Some good people claim they don't want any. Others want only two or three. I understand these sentiments. I felt that four was my limit, when it came to those exhausting child-rearing years in my 30s. I have a few friends who took as many as God provided, and ended up with seven or thirteen! But consider this: the bearing of children is the only thing we do, physically, that produces a new person whose soul will live into eternity. When I look at my children's faces in those photos, I see people I love who will often be parted from me in this life, but whom I'll be able to enjoy for eternity. Don't dismiss too quickly the wonder, the eternal value, of such a thing. Do I wish I'd had six more -- six more children of God to love and cherish forever? I wish I'd been up to it. I know I wasn't. But I do know that those who choose many children can always make this argument -- that it is an eternal investment --  whereas those who choose none or few, can never do so. There really is no eternal validation for choosing childlessness, I think. Perhaps I'm wrong. I know each parent has his or her own cross to bear. I do not want to pass judgment on situations I'm not aware of. I just hope young parents-to-be will add this eternal view to all their other considerations.

May you, dear reader, be enjoying these holidays with the ones you love.