And the tree was happy...

It can be truly fascinating to experience how children interpret stories. The other night, I read Josh The Giving Tree, by Shel Silverstein. This children's classic has always been a favorite of mine, and I so enjoyed reading this to Marie years ago, and was looking forward to the day when I could share it with Josh. However, his reaction to the relationship between the young boy and the tree took me off guard a bit. Honestly, we were sitting on the sofa the other night reading the story, and he almost began to cry when the tree, as a last gift to her young friend, allowed him to chop down her trunk for a boat- to sail far, far away. Josh's contention was that this didn't appear to be a sign of love on the part of the tree, but instead a violent selfish act on the part of the boy for wanting the tree to be chopped down.

Last night, hoping to rekindle a discussion about the story, Josh was adamant about never wanting to read that book again...it was too sad, he said!

Thinking that it may be best to let this settle for a few days, I'm hoping that Josh will eventually understand that the true message of the story is one of unquestionable, undeniable, and unconditional love for a young boy...which is exactly what we can expect to receive from our God. It's so easy to keep taking and taking things from this life, but invariably, God always has another precious gift waiting for us - even if it's as simple as an old tree stump in a park to sit upon and read some books with your kids.