Uniquely Made

We got the chance to hang out again with our grandson, Wyatt, and his parent, Ryan and Megan. Tons of fun, as always. 10 days old and he's really looking like a baby vs. a newborn. And he's already showing his unique personality. For example, most of the time he's a pretty chill kid. But in the evening, around 8:00 or so, he has a squirmy period. Squirmy, lifting his head up, looking around. Oh, there might be environmental explanations, like he's had a lot of stimulation throughout the day and gets squirmy at night to work it all out. But it's also likely that it's just how he is.

Our daughter, Megan, was fussy in the late afternoon and early evening. Why? That's just how she was (she has since grown out of this phase, thank goodness!).

Now, to be sure, you can't tell much about how someone will be by how they are as a 10-day-old, and that's not my point. I'm just saying that, contrary to the educational training I received in graduate school in the mid-1970s, we're not blank slates. The book of Genesis says that God created us in His image, and the Psalms speak of God knowing us even as we're being formed in the womb. We're all uniquely made by our Creator, and those uniquenesses are visible very early on.

This can make parenting a challenge, because what you learn with one child may not help you with another child. But that's not a bad thing. It's good to be reminded that we can't control everything, that we need to rely on the one who created our children. And knowing that our children are uniquely created makes parenting an adventure, to discover and encourage our children to develop their talents and pursue the things that interest them.

How fun it will be to see this little guy grow!