Tuesday, January 24, 2006

Laughter I

I deal with such serious issues in my work and I take ministry very seriously, but I hope I am not somber. A serious study of Jesus' life on earth reveals a sense of humor, wit and sarcasm and I don't want to forget to laugh. In light of that, here is an anecdote from my history of teaching:

Having taught parenting classes for fifteen years, I have come to realize that parents, as well as kids, “say the darndest things.” I was teaching a class on prioritizing parental authority. In other words, we discussed how not to waste too much energy on little picky things and be ready to confront and address serious and dangerous misbehavior.

 Often, parents waste energy on the little things.


As we discussed learning to redirect or ignore certain kinds of behavior, I explained that most of the “little picky things,” of which we had made a list, if ignored, would go away as part of the developmental process.



One exasperated father asked, “Well, when is my son going to stop picking his nose and eating it?” Before I could formulate an educated response, another father chimed up, “When he’s full.”

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