A Sweet Little Story..."My Brother"

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Part of the children's schooling includes going through these wonderful readers that precious friends have lent us. They are called the Christian Life Readers by Keepers of the Faith. They are sweet little stories that introduce new vocabulary words, teach a lesson, include a Bible verse, and have comprehension and application questions at the end. We have so enjoyed these! The stories are character building and filled with positive messages. Here is one that Julianna read recently that I really enjoyed. It's called "My Brother".

Who often with me kindly played,
And all my little trinkets made,
My kite and ball--though still unpaid?
          My brother.

Who made a sled when winter came,
With little ropes to draw the same,
And on its sides carved out my name?
          My brother.

And who was it that taught to me
The way to read my A, B, C,
And marked them on the slate for me?
          My brother.

Who gathered apples from the tree,
Chestnuts and walnuts too, for me:
Who cheerfully did all this? Thee,
          My brother.

Pictured to the left is a drawing of two brothers, both holding brooms, the younger one taking a bite of an apple, the older one with his arm proudly around his younger brother, which such a loving smile on his face.

We talked about how the older brother wasn't off doing his own thing, trying to get his little brother out of his hair, but rather, he gladly took on the role of being his big brother. Loving him through helping him, making things for him, and teaching him with such a thankfulness to have this younger brother. He didn't go and just get an apple from the tree for himself, but thought of his brother and got one for him too.

We talked about ways in which we see these acts of love in our family, and ways in which we see them not loving one another with frustration, pride and selfishness. Even as a mother, it challenged me...there are times when I don't always appreciate motherhood with this same attitude. To be just so thankful that God has given me these children to raise, to forget myself and not get frustrated with them not doing things on my terms because they messed with my routine or my current job/project. It was a wonderful thing, reading this sweet little story. It challenged all of us and reminded us of the importance of true love in a family.

What a blessing when so many more popular children's books glorify sibling rivalry and promote division amongst siblings. We try to be vigilant in not allowing that type of interaction between our children. I pray that the Lord would so knit their hearts together, that they would look fondly at one another when they're grown, with their arms around one another and say "My Brother" or "My Sister".

Here is the verse that was at the end of this story:
"He that loveth his brother abideth in the light, and there is none occasion of stumbling in him." 1 John 2:10

Here is Rebecca teaching Thomas how to read his A, B, C. :-)