As I gazed upon my son’s desk today I smiled, the truth stood before me – his desk tells the story of who he is on this day in time with far greater detail than any photograph ever could. An old wooden treasure box, a small George Washington tin with two rocks inside, a few special coins, several star wars figures and a scattering of lego pieces, some half finished homework, a golf ball, more rocks, a wooden dinosaur puzzle and some jolly rancher wrappers – all together with some other unique and very important objects in a big unorganized pile on a very small desk.
My children’s desks always frustrate me because they are a mess even when all else is clean. But today I saw their desks as a Holy place – a window into their world; a place where daily treasures end up, the story of their history for that day. If you love them and cherish the lives they lead then it can be like gazing upon the Constitution of the United States, it is the soul of their life in that moment captured and preserved.
Do you remember this story, “The Littlest Angel” by Charles Tazwell? The little angel gave his treasure box to Jesus on the day of His birth. In the box was a butterfly with golden wings captured one summer day in the hills of Jerusalem, a sky blue egg from a bird’s nest in the olive tree outside his kitchen door, two white stones found on a river bank where he and his friends played and a tooth marked leather strap, once worn by his beloved dog.
In the story God held up this gift as the one that pleased Him the most. Tazwell writes, “And the voice of God spoke, saying: Of all the gifts of the angels, I find that this small box pleases me most. Its contents are of the earth and of man, and my Son is born to be king of both. These are the things my Son, too, will know and love and cherish and then will leave behind when His task is done.” Those inspired words alone change the value of that common rock found on my son’s desk and it changes the value of each moment of each day.
I found a GREAT treasure box at our preschool yard sale a few weeks back. It looks ancient like it may have been found on a pirate’s ship. I gave it to my son and told him to put all the things he treasures most in there. The start of summer is a great time for the gift of a treasure box. Give one to your child and see what ends up in there.
Speaking of treasures – here’s a fabulous salmon recipe for the barbie from Cooking Light Magazine – give it a go!
4 Anaheim chiles
Cooking spray
2 shucked ears corn
1 cup diced tomato
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
6 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 teaspoon ground cumin
4 (6-ounce) skinless salmon fillets
-Place chiles on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 5 minutes on each side or until blackened. Place chiles in a heavy-duty zip-top plastic bag; seal. Let stand 5 minutes. Peel chiles; cut in half lengthwise. Discard seeds and membranes. Cut chiles into 1/4-inch strips.
-Place corn on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 10 minutes or until lightly browned, turning occasionally. Cool slightly. Cut kernels from cobs.
-Combine chiles, corn, tomato, cilantro, and juice; toss gently. Add 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.
-Combine remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt, remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and cumin, stirring well. Rub spice mixture evenly over both sides of salmon. Place salmon on grill rack coated with cooking spray; grill 4 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork or until desired degree of firmness. Serve with relish.
By Leigh Sackett [email protected]