This evening, our 5 year old said some words that made me cry and gently, yet profoundly grasped at my mommy’s heart. I have noticed lately that she has been more attentive to her older, special needs sister. When her 8 year old sister laughs or really obviously and purposefully does something, our five year old will sometimes gasp in joy and say, “Did you see that?” “Did you hear her laugh?!” Or she’ll say, “She’s really trying to talk!”
So this evening our 5 year old was watching her older sister like a hawk as big sis was laughing and being silly. I watched my 5 year old then approach her older sister and start tickling her. It is so obvious just how much she wants to play and interact with her special needs sibling. I helped our five year old play with her by showing her where to tickle her, what songs to sing to her (to get her attention) and then we played hide-and-seek. Our 8 year old loves to find people.
What were my my 5 year old’s profound words this evening? She said this about her older sister. “She never has anyone to play with…so I will be her friend and play with her all of the time!” She in fact said this a couple of times. I couldn’t help but cry a little (hiding it all the while from the kids.) But, I could tell my husband was touched too, as he looked at me with pleasure in his eyes from across the room.
I told my 5 year old this evening at bedtime that she had a pretty heart. This is something that I’ve talked to her about numerous times over the last couple of years. Anyone that really knows her understands that she is *very* visual and beauty oriented (with all things, human appearance and beauty in nature.) The Lord certainly did create her that way, and she also hears a lot just how cute and pretty she is. She seems rather immune to it now. I always try and talk to her about how having a kind and pretty heart is much more important and pleasing to the Lord than outward appearence. Yet, I also want her to know that she is “fearfully and wonderfully made.” She should never feel ashamed! But I think it’s important for all of us to know how to handle compliments. I also regularly share with her the verse from Proverbs, “Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised!” I explain it to her in 5 year old terms of course 
