A couple of quotes came across my eyes this week while reading. Both were from former presidents so I thought that it would be appropriate to share them with the coming Fourth of July weekend. This week will also mark Matthew’s 10 year birthday. I will not go into the details and get all mushy like I did last year around his birthday…I will let you catch up here with this link…you will be rewarded with the most precious video of Matthew meeting Sarah Anne for the first time What’s in a kiss? .
Over the past weekend we discovered another hidden talent…along with the ones he sharpened this weekend in the Special Treasures room at our church, he sharpened his ability to find “chinks in the armor” as he found on the very large mirror in his room at church a small crack in the bottom. Before he could be stopped he made the small crack be the source of the mirror now being in two pieces. The other sharpening skill was that of getting into something that he is supposed to stay out of…cabinets with little locks on them. No problem, just yank on the doors until the eyelets break loose…I sheepishly checked my in-box at work this morning knowing that these would be on the top of the list of “have-to-do” this week. There are advantages to being the maintenance dude where Matthew decides to wreak havoc…I can use the same proven techniques I am having to use at home and transfer them to my work.
“Nothing in this world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful people with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent. The slogan “press on” has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.” Calvin Coolidge
On to the new talent…we spent most of Saturday morning in the backyard with the temps almost perfect and the sun shining. It doesn’t happen too often but both the little ones were cooperating and wanted to be outside at the same time…and the older ones were home. As Hannah and Megan worked their dogs in the agility equipment Sarah Anne was content sliding and playing on the Little Tykes stuff…Matthew, on the other hand, was trying to figure out how to get over the chain link fence that surrounds our back yard. As I have mentioned before, he is fond of trying out all of the neighbors doors to see if they are open. I am not sure if my all of our neighbors are paranoid or if they are aware that Matthew likes to test their diligence on locking every door. In any case, I am grateful that they do lock their doors.
It took him a little while…but his persistence paid off. By the time I could get my large frame, without shoes, over the fence Matthew had already tried the lower slider and had made his way up the deck and was trying the upper slider to see if it was open. I am so glad the doors were locked and they were gone…it is not easy to explain the wonders of our child to a new target of Matthew’s persistent door checking ability. After retrieving Matthew and placing him over the fence and back into our yard my loving wife asked if I wanted to walk around the block instead of climbing back over the fence…I am not sure if she was recalling the previous sight of watching me glide like a gazelle as it felt and I saw in my mind or if in her eyes it was more like a tender footed gorilla climbing over razor wire. I opted to swallow any pride and “hop” back over the fence, using the Little Tykes jungle gym as a landing spot and support. Sarah Anne had a puzzled look on her face as I sat next to her near the slide.
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” Winston Churchill
A great quote to measure our success and failures by. I am reminded when I read this that my past success do not guarantee more in the future…I have to work just as hard to create new ones and not to rest or coast on past success. And about failures…the more I fail, the more I learn. Thank you Matthew for showing me and giving me another reason to review what it means to be persistent.
Keep your doors locked! Matthew will be checking…
Many have asked if it is okay to share this blog about our Lessons from Matthew…not only is okay, but we emphatically ask that you would. We welcome any chance to show how good God is and how he is working through the power of prayer.