YOU COULD LEARN A LOT

By Linda Woodward

It was a lesson in trust. It was a lesson I have had to learn. It was a lesson I won’t forget.

Trusting in Him -- the way a child trusts. God has been teaching me that trust in a multitude of ways because in my walk I need great faith. Not a little faith. Great faith. So what did God send to teach me this? He sent a child.

In the poem titled "Welcome to Holland", by Emily Perl Kingsley, it describes how it really feels to have a special needs child.

“When you are going to have a baby, it’s like planning a fabulous vacation trip -- to Italy. You buy a bunch of guide books and make a bunch of plans. The Coliseum, Michelangelo’s David. The gondolas in Venice. ...........It’s all very exciting. After months of eager anticipation, the day finally arrives. You pack your bags and off you go. Several hours later, the plane lands. The stewardess comes in and says, "Welcome to Holland......................................"

Then comes the realization that you didn’t pack anything that you really need.

After that.............................. Comes the realization that everything you need to raise this child doesn’t fit into a suitcase anyway. It has already been placed deep in your heart. It’s not so much about things you need to have to raise this child. It’s more about what you need to lose to raise this child.

Everything you need to lose.........................is of the world. Everything you need to have......................is of God. You cannot help but be changed as your focus changes. The greatest change........................... I found................is in me.

You need to learn love, like you’ve never known it before. Not worldly love----God's  love. You need to learn patience, like you’ve never known it before. Job’s patience. You need to learn faith, like you’ve never known it before. Mary's faith.

As you raise this child, this child will also raise you. Yes, Leigha became a lot like me as she has grown up. The thing I didn’t expect is how much I have become like Leigha, since we have grown together. God knew what He was doing.

You could learn a lot from Leigha.

She is one of God’s special children, who are here on this earth specifically to teach us many lessons. Yes, you too, could learn a lot from Leigha.

“As you raise this child, this child will also raise you". I’m quoting myself there, because that is true wisdom and I recognize it when it comes.

Why do I say she raised me? Some would consider that in the course of teaching a child with any sort of disability, you would have to lower yourself to the child’s level. You definitely have to work at the child’s level… that is true.

Did I consider it lowering myself to that level? Far from it. In fact, the opposite is true. I have had to raise myself to Leigha’s level, because Leigha’s level is a lot closer to God than I had ever seen before.

Leigha, along with her learning disabilities, has other traits stemming from her disability that keep her from fitting in to this world. Yes Leigha‘s level is a lot closer to God:

Leigha can’t lie. It isn’t in her to do so.

Leigha can’t pretend. Also, not in her,

Leigha understands love. Very much in her.

Leigha can’t comprehend "not nice".  You cannot explain to her why someone would be mean to another person. She does not understand.

Leigha has to trust me as much as I have to trust God. Change to Leigha is a lot more frightening than it is for the rest of us. It takes an enormous amount of help by me and an enormous amount of faith on her part to do anything in a day that goes against her schedule.

Look at an example of this trust. The trust that I need to have in God

I was driving Leigha to school one day and we did what we do every day, we went over her schedule. The school had typed up a schedule of every day of the week and what activity Leigha would be doing literally from moment to moment.

Part of my drive every morning is to listen to her read me her schedule. Every day. This assures her what her day holds and sharing it with me makes the assurance also come from me.

She took out her schedule that morning, like she does every morning and she turned to me and asked me what she asks me every morning. "Mommy, what day is it?"  It was Wednesday. Yet I was still sleepy and I thought for a moment and said, "It’s Tuesday, isn’t it?"

Listen to this response.

Listen to this trust.

She looked at me and I will never forget the look on her face. Quizzical. I looked back at her, watching her process what I had just said, and then she looked me in the eye and said totally seriously ,..............."It’s Tuesday...........................Again?"

That girl had so much trust in me, she didn’t question the impossibility of what I said...............she just believed......she just believed........ she believed it was Tuesday again. That...................is childlike faith.

That is what I have learned from Leigha. That, and ......................

I’ve learned that you can’t lie.

I’ve learned that it is ok to not be able to pretend.

I’ve learned how simple real love is.

I’ve learned that it just doesn’t make sense when people are mean to other people.

I’ve learned to trust ..........with that childlike faith.

What have I really learned?

I’ve learned truth.

I’ve learned to be real.

I’ve learned love. Simply love.

I’ve learned grace.

I’ve learned childlike faith.

I’ve learned that God knew what He was doing. I’ve learned to get a car with a day and date reading in the controls. I’ve learn to trust so much .........so much that I don’t question the impossibility.................I  just ........"Believe".

I’ve tried to share that with everyone I know. I’ve tried to share it. The way Leigha does.

Yes, you could learn a lot from Leigha.

Thank you God.

Copyright 2007 Linda Woodward