Peaches

Stubborn.  Seriously, my youngest has got to be the most stubborn girl I have ever encountered.  She has always done things her own way, including the way she decided to come into the world.  At eight weeks early, in the middle of the night, and so fast we have no pictures to prove she actually came out of me, she started out calling the shots!  Yesterday was no different in the life of my Olivia.

The school offers breakfast in the morning for the kids that come early because their parents have to leave for work.  Olivia rides the bus in the morning and always has breakfast at home.  Well, at least that’s what I thought.  I found out yesterday, after reading an email that said she was overdrawn in her school account (she also takes cold lunch, so there is no reason for her to even use her lunch account), that my dear, sweet, Livi has been eating TWO breakfasts! Not only has she been getting a double dose of the most important meal of the day, she is getting it by eating PEACHES!

Those of you who know my Olivia, know two things about her:

1. She prefers to eat poptarts

and

2. She REALLY prefers to eat poptarts

Imagine my surprise, when I questioned her about the debt at school, and she told me it was because she was eating peaches and milk in the morning!  Seriously?!!  It is a fight to get this girl to eat anything that is not her norm.  By the way her norm includes; green beans, mashed potatoes, NO meat, a few select cheeses, and you guessed it poptarts.  Most definitely, not peaches!  Sometimes, I wonder how she survives!

I am guessing she gets her stubbornness from me.  I have been known to dig my heels in and not give an inch on several occasions; just ask my husband!  I am sure if you checked with my parents you would find that I gave them some headaches while I was growing up too (only when it came to my diet of course).  But, I just could not get over the fact that she was eating peaches!  I was happy she had made a healthy choice (as healthy as school peaches can be anyway) but why didn’t she just ask me?  Was it because she thought I would say no?  Or did she think I couldn’t help her get what she wanted?  Whatever it was, she was sure she could handle this breakfast issue all on her own.

This all got me thinking about the numerous times that I try to take care of things on my own.  Whether it’s because I think God is too busy dealing with other issues, or there are situations where I think I am the best person equipped to handle the situation; I admit I can be that stubborn girl who thinks she knows best.

Don’t get me wrong, I think stubbornness is a great quality to have when channeled in the right way.  This inherent determination, that Livi seems to have, has gotten her through the very challenging times she has already had to face in her young life.  But without surrender stubbornness can be a dangerous and isolating little game.  That is the game changer!  Surrender doesn’t negate determination.  Surrender brings us closer to the One who can get us through to the other side of what we are trying to do on our own.

My little girl could have avoided some consequences if she had just come to me and asked for peaches!  But she didn’t and she got into a little bit of trouble (as I tried to suppress my laughter)!  Sometimes, it’s as easy as asking for something we want and other times it’s a lot more complicated.  Today, I am going to choose happy because I have a little girl and a big God who are helping me see that there is freedom in surrender!