I have to let you in on a bit of a secret...the kids at The Covering are KIDS...they are not always precious little angels dressed up all cute in their Christmas clothes and filled with gratidue and gentleness. I'm sure that's a surprise to you! It always surprises me when the darling little 3-year old girl pitches a fit or that sweet boy that loves to cuddle with me hauls off and slaps the darling little 3 year-old. It happens all over the world! Even in Sierra Leone with our special little ones.
Here's an example, you know that moment, after everyone has opened their Christmas presents and said their thank yous and then you wish that you had gotten something else...maybe the sweater is the wrong color or the vidoe game is the wrong version...and in America we have this little thing called a return policy and we return what we didn't want and get what we did! It's soooo convenient! It's hard to be grateful for the thing that we didn't want or didn't seem to work right. Our kiddos did the same thing...just minutes after opening Christmas presents (that they were EXTREMELY grateful for and it was so fun to watch them open all the gifts) some of them started looking around and noticing that others got something "better" than them, there were a few that were missing pieces, and some of the boys didn't realize that if you take the motorized car apart it won't work anymore:) they had theirs in pieces in no time! And then it was, Aunty Cari I want that one or I don't like this color or mine is broken. And there is no return policy in Sierra Leone...so being content with what we recieve is one of  the hardest lessons to learn on either side of the pond.
And here's the deal...I realized in the midst of it that I do the EXACT same thing with God (and something tells me I'm not the only one)...I recieve gifts from him, presents everyday and after a few moments of gratitude I begin to wonder "WHAT WAS HE THINKING!?!?" this is not what I expected or asked for...it's messy or hard...it's painful or not quite right. "Gee, Lord, thanks for this beautiful day to spend at the beach, but it would have been better if the waves were a bit bigger." "Lord, this $15 pint of ice cream I splurged on for Christmas is sooo good, thanks for providing it for me, but could you just make sure the electricity stays on because the more times it melts and freezes the worse it tastes:)" OR "Lord, thank you for the priveledge of being a part of bringing hope and life to these kids, but it's just not home and I am tired of being in this 3rd culture exsitance." "Lord, I'm grateful for these precious moments, BUT..." and there seems to always be a BUT.
So, I've done my gratefulness list...and I'm going to keep working on it and now I need to work on getting rid of the BUT...maybe SL will help me erase the buts and my butt (sorry, I had to put that...just some "little" humor since I missed all the holiday jokes!) 'cuse rice will do that and so will $15 pints of ice cream and no return policy.

-dancing boys during prayer time
-dreams for tomorrow
-reconnecting with friends
-quiet mornings