Today, my family and mom spent a great morning opening presents and eating a great meal. Everyone was doing good and the kids were doing great. We finished our game and chocolate conspicuously at the same time, ahem, and mom went home to nap. The kids and I watched half of a new movie while my husband also napped. All good, all going beautifully.
Enter the blended family drama. We went then after the nap to deliver presents to the grandkids, the ones we rarely ever see. And our grand daughter was acting out of character and I realized how much she has on her shoulders at just 4 years of age. Her mom cheated on her dad and they are divorcing and the new couple are together with a new baby and her dad is now with a new girlfriend and there are 4 languages spoken around her and the mom and grandma have a co-defendant relationship and happen to live right next to each other and whew, I am drained just thinking about all that. And I realized how difficult blended families are and much more acutely, how much sin effects children. They have no choice in the matter. There is no norm because they are trying to learn life but they know it is not right somehow. And nobody calling out bad behavior compounds that, no consistency compounds that, no Godly principles compounds that. So when I was asked to finally be involved and teach her piano, I jumped at it. Hey, I am stable. I am faithful to Godly principles. I can love her and be consistent with rewards and punishments and be a rock in her ever-shifting seas. Blended families are full of challenges but with God, there is hope and help and instruction as to how to navigate life. Hope, a beautiful word.❤