So I’ve been a busy nut this past however long since my last post. I bought another business, moved, made new friends and sent myself on an emotional rollercoaster of a learning experience . . . not all in that order, of course. It seems the lesson I keep learning over and over is that somewhere along the way we’ve lost our freedom to love. Bear with me as I try to paint the pictures in my head with words –

Do you remember being a child and making/having friends without thinking about it? Other kids were just automatically friends . . . .if they were in your class, on your playground, living next door, it didn’t matter. There was no effort put into making friends – no thought about will they or won’t they like me? It was as simple as, “Hi Mrs H. Can Mikey come out and play?” There was no issue with gender, size, or color.

Imaginations ran wild and it was awesome. Cops and Robbers didn’t involve toy guns – just your finger pointed in the appropriate direction with whatever noises you felt like making. Playing house didn’t involve dolls to vicariously live through or real tea sets . . . you could just imagine it.

So what happened to all that? At what point did it become to real for most folks to handle? Why do we care any more if someone doesn’t really like us for who we are . . . it’s not like there aren’t millions of other kids to play with. When did the physical interaction of a hug become inappropriate or awkward? Especially between the opposite sex? When did we become so judgemental? Who drew the lines that we have to follow now? They obviously didn’t go to the same art class that I did . . . I think we need to change that.