Little Charlie & Me

It was a brisk Sunday morning in the Heartland, not long ago when it happened. Little Chloe was scampering about the house locating her Sunday-go-to-meeting clothes to put on for church. The Missus was already over at the Lord’s house, practicing with the rest of the English bell choir for the services this week, and little Charlie was engaged in his favorite pastime, sleeping. I was having a cup of coffee and trying desperately to get my motor running for the day ahead. The cat’s had been fed and were lounging about the house in their favorite napping spots and the house was fairly quiet. A time of quiet reflection gave me pause and I took the opportunity to look upon little Charlie’s sleeping countenance as he began to stir.

The Missus had laid out his church clothes, not much bigger than a pair of handkerchiefs, a bottle and a diaper with orders to have the grandchildren ready for church when she returned from rehearsal. Chloe circulated up and down the stairs, the progress of her dressing evident with each loop through the stairwell. I picked up my grandson and marveled at the heft of him. Then I set about disrupting his leisurely waking process by stripping off his night clothes and dressing him for church. He put up quite a struggle, but all the old moves returned as Poppy deftly swapped out his diaper and popped him into his clean duds.

Little Charlie didn’t take kindly to this whirlwind of activity and he conveyed his displeasure with a series of red faced grunts accompanied by gymnastic squirming. At least he did until Poppy finished dressing him and wrapped him back up in his blanket. Cradling him in the crook of my comparatively huge left arm, I produced the holy grail of infants, a warm bottle of yummy formula. I zeroed in on his intake port with the nozzle and he immediately quit squirming and got down to business. As he feasted on his bottle, I settled into the moment and watched him intently. And in his placid little face, in the quiet of the house, on a brisk winter morning, on the Lord’s Day, I caught a fleeting glimpse of another face looking back at me; the face of the living God. I solemnly thanked Him for this awesome gift; for the moment, for the glimpse, for this precious child.

Scottie