As a mother to two boys, making things beautiful does not always come to mind. I once read where someone defined a boy as noise with dirt on him. I had to chuckle because my two boys fit this description quite well. In their everyday business, dirtiness, and loudness, beauty would seem to play no role. However, choosing beauty in the midst of the mess is exactly where I am trying to be intentional.
Those mothers living with all males can easily say that taking time to create beauty will be wasted and unappreciated on our sons. I am learning they need to be surrounded by beauty just as much as the females in our lives. When I am defining beauty, I am not talking about creating a dainty, china doll like living area where boys have to be perfectly still and pastel colors rule the color pallet. I am talking about surrounding boys with the beauty in which God created in our world and taking the time to point out the creativeness and originality of our Creator.
As a mother who wants to create life long memories for her sons, I have to be intentional about what I choose for them in all areas of their lives. Which one will my sons remember more: an afternoon of watching half hour segments of children's television shows or an afternoon spent in the mountains discovering a brown snake and splashing in the cold mountain streams of water? Will another video game be on their lists of favorite childhood memories or the walks we took at the park playing "Pooh sticks" at every bridge we passed? Will a snack out of a cardboard box dished out on a paper towel make their list or will Friday night pizza night with hot, buttered popcorn sprinkled with M&Ms all snuggled on the couch together more than likely come to mind?
Just because they are boys are we content to let them read any book from the library just to get them to read, or do we take the time to dig for classics and then take more time to read them aloud to share in the wonder of adventure stories together? Do we settle for less for our sons just because they are often "noise with dirt on them?" I love the quote from Gladys Hunt in Honey for a Child's Heart that says, "A young child, a fresh uncluttered mind, a world before him - to what treasures will you lead him? With what will you furnish his spirit?"
As mothers, we must be intentional about our mothering. The memories we create with our sons will last a lifetime. Watching the sun fade into the night sky, listening to the sounds of birds outside our windows and trying to identify them in our bird book, chasing butterflies, remembering the day we tagged monarchs together, planting a garden, using the best pens, markers and paper to color and draw, singing and dancing together, decorating the house for Christmas, coloring Easter eggs - all these things add up to a lifetime of beauty. They add up to a lifetime of sharing God's world and His creation with our sons who can then share them with his children.
Yes, it is often easier to let them sit in front of the television, play another video game or just ignore the mess, but the rewards of intentionally choosing beauty and participating in God's world far outweigh the inconvenience and extra work. Choosing to point out the wonder our God has created for us allows our sons to get used to seeing, hearing, and tasting the best. Not the best that money can buy but the best in terms of what God has freely given to us to enjoy. Red juicy watermelon dripping from chins, soft vanilla ice cream melting down a cone, stars sparkling in the night sky, watching the first snowflakes of the year falling, listening to a mother sing a bedtime hymn or song just like she did when they were little - oh, those are the beautiful moments we must choose to invest in for our sons.
**** Michelle Zoppa is a wife, home schooling mother of two boys, and author. Her Bible studies for boys and girls include An Honorable Boy, A Virtuous Girl, Increasing in Wisdom, and God's Armor: Suited for Life. She has also written The Principal Thing Journals, Bringing the World to Life Geography series, and several history study guides. You may purchase her books at Queen Homeschool. I have know Michelle for 23 years (!) and am honored to call her my friend! ****
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