Finding your Freedom

There is so much that I could write about and I probably should post about 10 new posts just to catch everyone up with our Summer. The kids and I just returned from a trip North to see my nephew get baptized in PA. We made some stops on the way there and the way back and all in all took 11 days of visiting and traveling. It was wonderfully exhausting. We loved seeing family and it was wonderful to get to offer Ristow a variety of fresh and new experiences. He rode horses, flew kites, rode amusement park rides, fed bread to a giant pile of carp, ate giant marshmallows, bought his first comic book, stayed up late looking at it in front of a fire and got to fish off the front of a boat. It was a big trip for Ristow.

But, my favorite thing that Ristow experienced was completely unplanned and unexpected.
We rode the boat over to a beach at the far end of the lake and there found 3 giant piles of sand that had been dumped there and not yet spread out. Now Ristow is not much of a get your hands dirty kind of kid. He plays in the sand, but not to the point of ever really needing to rinse off good. What I witnessed when he ran over to that first sandpile was awesome.

All of a sudden he found a new and wonderful freedom in the sand. He climbed to the top with much determination and effort. Then slid down and starting rolling in the sand and making sand angels. He covered himself in it and did not once stop smiling. The kid who liked to make a castle and that's it, now was immersed in the infinite possibilities of the sand.
Maybe it was the fact that it was in a different form or that the quantity was so ridiculous, but it allowed him to just play and have fun with no rules of what was expected of him.

It really got me thinking about what kind of experiences that we have as adults allow us that kind of creative freedom. Sometimes I feel like our faith is like that giant pile of sand and is waiting for us to discover ways of experiencing it. To not care what others think but to enjoy it, to play in it and to glorify God with it. I loved that Ristow discovered that he loves playing in the sand, I love that he discovered even more about his ability to conquer his goals and I love that he expressed so many creative ways to play. He is such a great kid and I am glad to have witnessed his joy!