The Children's Hour

"Between the dark and the daylight,
When the night is beginning to lower,
Comes a pause in the day's occupations,
That is known as the Children's Hour."

...so begins one of my favorite poems. It is the sweet tale of three little children quietly sneaking up on their father to pounce upon him and smother him with their hugs & kisses...he lovingly relates this daily "ambush" of which he becomes the victor and ends in these sweet words,

"I have you fast in my fortress,
And will not let you depart,
But put you down into the dungeon
In the round-tower of my heart.

And there I will keep you forever,
Yes, forever and a day,
Till the walls shall crumble to ruin,
And moulder in dust away!"

What a loving way to demonstrate the affection we have for our children and the importance of the "pause in the days occupation".
As I reflect this afternoon of the busyness of the past two weeks in our home, I am saddened that too aften the demands and activities of this world take me away from the real goals that God has laid upon my heart for my family!
Isn't that the way that it always is? It is so much easier to be carried away with the non-essentials of this life and lose focus of those things that truly matter.
I often times stay up way later than my family and as I sit in the quiet, dark house I think over the words we shared in the day and the things we did and many, many times I say to myself, "did that really matter?" I look at their sweet sleeping faces and any hardness of heart that I may have had melts away and suddenly life comes into perspective. Usually I vow to treasure them more and I pray for them & I commit that tomorrow a difference will be made more for eternity...but then comes the morning and soon after the distractions and irritations of our daily life and once again I make the mistakes I so despise and another day becomes the past.
Oh, how I long for the day when I will be able to walk away from those things that hinder me and turn instead wholeheartedly to what God has called me to at this time: to love Him, to love & cherish my husband and sons and to bring them up in His ways with joy and guidance! That is my prayer during these foundational years when my children's hearts are tender and turned towards me. Lord, may we seize the opportunities and let the other things wait!