We’d just gotten into the car to head off to the Palm Sunday service at our church. and Joe fired up the engine after all the seat belts were well and truly secured, when Sadie asked to play a ‘car game’ called ‘ABC Animal.’ This is a game that has been played over many, many years and across thousands of miles and it’s one that everyone but Sadie has lost interest in playing. My tolerance was a little lower than usual, because I usually can work up the enthusiasm to play the game with her, because I wasn’t feeling particularly well. I sat back into my seat and said, “I know a game we can play, a brand new one.”
Both kids asked excitedly what the game was. I told them that it was where, on our way to church, we all sit in silent wonderment at the beauty that God has made all around us.
There was a short silence, in which I could hear their minds thinking just how bad a game that would be, when Sadie said, “That sounds like a really bad game, I’m never going to play that!”
Joe and I cracked up.
Out of that came a new game. We decided we’d look for G.O.D. we had to spot words that started with either a, you guessed it, G. or a O. or a D. So that’s what we did. People called out Gerrard Street! Ontario Medical! Disability Supplies! We laughed as we played and talked about what we were seeing.
We played the game on the way home too, surprising them with a stop at Dairy Queen after church. The fact that it began with a ‘D’ was just a bonus.
After lunch we went over to the Gardiner museum where they got to take part in an class on the use of clay, making flowers and pots and a man in a bathtub (?) and then take a tour of the new show installed as part of Canada’s 150th anniversary.
It was a busy day.
When I went to bed I thought about Sadie’s remark about the really bad ‘game’ I’d made up and realized that I must think it’s a really bad game too because I certainly don’t play it enough.
So, I’m going to aim for a little more silent wonderment at the beauty all around us, and I’m going to throw in a little dose of noticing the beauty within each person I meet too.
Let’s see if this game has the traction that ABC Animal had.
