With the recent events in Japan my mind's wheels have been turning and I'm realizing that life is shorter than we think or expect. Those millions of people didn't wake up that morning knowing that a massive earthquake was going to shake their world and then a tsunami would wash away whatever was left. So all this has me thinking about what is to come for not only me but my kids. I asked Cade about heaven and what happens when people die. He says when you die you go to Heaven to live with Jesus...unless you are bad then you go under the ground with the devil. I told him that you had to ask Jesus to live in your heart in order to go to Heaven. He then folds his hands, closes his eyes and very quickly says "Jesus, come in my heart". I'm trying hard to explain on a 6 year old level but also I don't want to elaborate on Hell b/c I don't want to scare him. I'm already not fond of him talking about the devil. I told him when Jesus lives in your heart you have to be good, nice, obey your parents and not be mean to your sister. I figured I should work this to my advantage. He then very seriously says "Mom, I try my hardest to be good but the devil just takes over and makes me do bad things." I told him that Jesus is stronger than the devil and therefore he should be able to be good. To which he replies "Jesus and the devil made a line in my heart and Jesus has crossed over the line to fight the devil but the devil is still there a little and makes me mean." Seriously?? How do I respond to that? Even a 6 year old grasps the age old concept of "the devil made me do it".
Aly on the other hand says Jesus lives in Heaven and lives in her heart so her heart is Heaven. Whatever works I guess!
On another subject: I'm getting increasingly frustrated with what he is learning from other kids. There is a particular girl in our neighborhood that he plays with all the time. She's his age and they play good together (for the most part). They fight and get mad at each other, Cade will tell her to go home and not come back then the next day they're back on the trampoline again. My problem is this girl apparantly says bad words and talks about things I don't think Cade should be hearing yet. She is the only kid in our neighborhood that is Cade's age so that makes playing with other kids hard b/c I don't want him playing with kids alot older than him. Cade has started saying things and when I ask him where he heard that it's always the same answer. He knows what is right and wrong but he is also a curious 6 year old boy. Thankfully, at this point in his life he still tells us everything and will ask us what something means. I'm not a fan of him losing his innocent to the world mindset. Especially from kids his age. I don't think telling him he can't play with her is sending the right message either. I don't want him to think he can't be friends with someone just because they are raised differently. That's not being a light to the world, that is teaching him to be an elitist. This parenting thing is tough! When kids are babies and they cry all night and we think "I wish they would get older so things would be easier", we do not realize at the time that babies are the easiest. I truly think newborns are the easiest stage of parenting. Yeah, we're not getting any sleep but it's only b/c the baby is hungry not b/c she asked what sex is. I'm sure there is a lifetime of lost sleep ahead of me!
