My oldest daughter recently turned three and, seemingly overnight, became a different person in many ways. For example, she loves taking baths. Then one evening, when I gently interrupted her playtime with a “in a little bit, I am going to start your bath,” she reacted as if baths were the worst things. As we approached bathtime, there were tears, a game of run-and-chase around the house, and screams of, “I don’t want to take a bath.”
Fast-forward ten minutes, and my daughter was the happiest, playing with her bath toys, making small splashes, and putting bubbles on her face to resemble Santa Claus.
There was my happy little one experiencing the time of her life with the simplest environment. Whether she remembered how she felt ten minutes ago, or if she simply had no reason to recollect, the past was not on her mind. She was living in the moment without worrying or caring about missing her playtime toys downstairs or concerned about the end of bathtime and the dreaded bedtime that would shortly follow. Oh, to be a child!
As someone who struggles with anxiety, I look at my daughter and wish I could live in the moment all the time.
Jesus tells us, “unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 18).“ I believe he is teaching us about faith, trust, and humility in Matthew 18. I want to overlap trust with mindfulness. Watching my daughter going from a near tantrum because I told her she needed a bath to then laughing with me as we served pretend coffee in the bathtub, revealed so much to my heart. My child trusts me. She was not holding the moment of tears and frustration against me. At the same time, that unpleasant moment was gone from her mind and she was not dwelling on it. Rather, she had a blast with the moment that stood before her. She was enjoying all that was in front of her without needing to mentally plan what pajamas she was going to wear or what books to read. That was not of importance in the present moment. That would be dealt with later. There would be no reason for my daughter to think of anything other than how to balance a rubber ducky on the small boat without the boat sinking.
As I reflect on this, I think of all the moments I missed out on because I was worried about things that did not need to be worried about. It is a reminder of how important trusting God is. By deepening trust in God, I can be less anxious, more relaxed, and attentive to all the glorious gifts He presents before me every day.
