Time Well Spent Brings Joy

February 25, 2001

We have lived in the same house almost thirty-eight years. Our trees and children were just "seedlings" in 1963. Both have grown tall and stately.

The boys have long since left the nest. They, like our trees, have started their own seedlings. I smile when they tell me about the ball games they have driven far and near to see. That is altogether familiar of similar distances we drove for the same reasons.

Many mornings we awoke to find three lively boys in our bed then. Now we sometimes awake with two granddaughters jumping in our bed, squealing with delight, as Kallie says: "Emmitt, do you sleep with your hat on?"

The Bible states that children are an heritage and a reward from the Lord. (Psalm 127:3) Children and trees are like an oasis in the desert. They bring joy, refreshment and blessings to our lives. I miss those days when the boys were growing up. I miss catching them red-handed in the cookie jar. I miss their standard "alibi." "Mom, you're the best mom in the whole world, so will you marry us when we grow up?"

I remember the dirty dishes in the sink and the unmade beds during their growing years. I flew a lot of kites, shot a lot of basketballs, made a lot of cookies and watered a lot of trees. The boys don't remember dirty dishes and a messy house, but they do remember rock hunting trips, picnics, ball games and Christmas.

Our plumbing has grown older along with our house. It seems every Christmas we have to knock a hole in the wall to fix it. Sometimes I get aggravated with it and threaten to move. It is then that Lance, our middle son remarks: "No! You can't move. You can't leave all these trees. This is where we grew up!" I clung to this tall handsome man when he left home for the first time. "But Mom, a Christian never has to say good-bye," and he held me tight with all of his 6'4" frame. As we watched him drive away,

I felt happy that I flew all those kites and played checkers, always losing on purpose. I also came to a profound realization: The best thing to spend on children is "time."

My children taught me that loving and caring are never wasted. I learned that time spent with children can never be replaced with material things. No amount of money can ever replace the love or time in a child's life.

I've found this concept applies to my trees as well. I love to sit in the swing under the shade of our trees and enjoy the reward of those seedlings I planted so long ago. It's the same feeling when I look at three tall handsome men and I think: "They are like trees along a river bank bearing luscious fruit each season without fail. Their leaves shall never wither, and all they do shall prosper" (Psalm 1:3 TLB).