waiting. *smile*

i spent a couple of hours this afternoon playing with c, the recently adopted daughter of some friends, so her parents could clean and pack for an impending move. with rain coming down all day, we opted to go to an indoor playarea, where c's mom had signed up for a pass (smart move).

i was hoping to squeeze in a workout before watching c, but then i remembered that i would be spending the afternoon chasing after a high-energy toddler. i opted to skip the workout (smart move).

c is this adorable and amazing three year-old girl. up until about six months ago, she had spent most of her life in an orphanage. she was one in a sea of children, given minimal care and little affection. when my friends first brought her back home, she was a wild child - throwing things, kicking, grabbing... an unpredictable, albeit a very cute tornado.

the transformation she has gone through in even just a few short months has been remarkable. she's a quick learner, grasping vocabulary in english rapidly. though she is still high-energy, she's actually quite an obedient and thoughtful child. but wow, does she have energy!

at one point this afternoon, c really wanted to sit in this little swing - the only swing in the whole play area. a little chinese girl was swinging with her grandma, and when c approached and tried to commandeer the swing, the grandma barked at c in shanghainese to wait. i explained to the grandma that c doesn't understand shanghainese. i then turned to c. "we have to wait," i said. "wait."

c broke into a wide grin. "wait!" she said exuberantly and then clasped her hands and stood there, happy to wait.

and wait she did, for a couple of minutes, until the little girl got tired of swinging and c merrily claimed the swing for her own.

i have never been that happy to wait - for a swing, for most things in my life. after we returned to c's home and i recounted the experience to her parents, they told me that when they've told c to wait, they've granted her the very things she was waiting for. "wait" never meant "no," and c has learned that. for her, to wait is not a negative thing; it's a delightful anticipation of what she knows is coming.

if only i waited with such certainty and joy at what my Heavenly Father promises me and asks me to wait for. if c's parents are so good at caring for her, who am i to doubt how my God cares for me?


mood: pensive

cups of coffee: 2