Just a little time

I got to spend this weekend with some amazing kids (well, Peyton would say she is not a kid anymore, she is a teenager, but you get the drift) I love this family as if they were my own and I am always excited to spend time with them. Dalton, who is a feisty 11 year old, always plays the tough guy role. He always acts as if he doesn't care if he gets to see me or not, if he gets my attention or not, or if I am even around. I have always suspected that he really did enjoy the time we have together (I babysat them in the summer of '04 and have been a part of their lives since) and recently his mom confirmed my suspicions. While I get the tough guy attitude, his mom hears the real thing - asking when I am coming, excited of time with just the two of us...This became apparent yesterday afternoon.

Soon after their mom left, Peyton was off somewhere and Dalton wanted to play ping-pong. After a crazy 15 minutes of some insane hitting and chasing of balls, he decided he was done. He said he was going to go play a video game in his room, and he asked me if I wanted to come watch him. How could I say no to this kid - there wasn't any pressing issue to attend to, no dinner to make, no animals getting into trouble - so I went and sat beside him while he showed off all the different parts of his new XBox game. We sat there for around an hour when I had to go check on his sister to see if she was ready to babysit, and he looked completely deflated when I had to leave his side. I wasn't doing anything. We talked about the game some, but I know that wasn't what was important to him. There was something even more precious to him that he was yearning for - my time. Time. What a simple gift to give, yet also one of the hardest. Our lives are so jammed pack full of things (yes I am guilty of this as well) that we forget sometimes that all people may need and want from us is our time. And you know, I think that is really what most of us want from relationships - time.

This weekend helped me to determine that I need to be more aware of what is taking up my time. What is truly important and what is not. Time - a priceless gift whose rewards are unmeasureable.