Be Thou My Vision

"The limits are, as always, those of vision." - James Broughton

I had the incredible pleasure of meeting "limited" kids today. My mom takes care of a little special needs boy, who goes to a school for kids like him and others who have special needs. My sister and I got to visit it today (Friday) since we didn't have school. Wow! What an incredible experience. Can I share some of these beautiful kids with ya? And of course, names will be changed due to "privacy reasons" . . . smile. :)

Justin is a freckled, cute little guy who can't see. His blindness is due to his father beating him when he was a baby. Cruelty is unnerving, but this child still smiles. (Why? I have no idea . . . yet I do kinda know 'cause I know the One who loves him) Anyway, he's the little guy that "coincidentally" told my mom he liked her hair after she had gotten a haircut, even though no other person had mentioned it. smile. I LOVE this kid! Of course, he's pretty ornery too. He was clapping his hands, trying to annoy this other little guy during a movie. Perfect? Uh, no. But adorable. He told my mom today, "Julia, I like you."
"I like you too, Justin."
"Have a fan-tabulous day!"
Isn't that the cutest thing? This guy may be limited by a lack of physical vision, but that little guy's outlook isn't impaired. He still smiles. He still claps his hands and twirls a container lid on the floor. He told another little boy, "Jeff," who is probably about the same age with most likely a learning disability, "Jeff, I like you."
Jeff responded without missing a beat, "Justin, I like you too."
I heard Justin say that again a little later to Jeff, and the answer was the same.

It's the child graces, isn't it? Maybe if we went around telling people not only that we love them, but that we like them, this world might be spread with a few more rays of sunshine. What do ya think?

Emily is a little down syndrome girl with blond hair and a bright smile. She doesn't talk, but her grin can speak volumes. We think she has a crush on the boy my mom takes care of who also cannot speak. I don't know about you, but love amazes me. Special needs, limited mind pulses cannot limit love. Maybe that's because God is love, and God is unbound, expansive, limitless.

Mark is a thin boy with droopy eyes. He whines and wails and the world seems to him to be against him. But still. Even in this miserable mess of a child, there's still something that makes me want to run with him and swing him on a swing and play catch with him because somewhere in his soul, I think there's a smile and a laugh. Of course, I know the whining must get old and the trying to curb his weary complaining must be so tiring to the teachers, and I'm sure that if I'd have stuck around longer, it might have got to me, but I still believe that these kids are so special in the eyes of Almighty God. I know because He creates in me a desire to love with His love kids I don't even know. I am made to wonder, also, what kinda care these kiddos get at home too. Maybe Mark doesn't get the hugs and the grins and the empathy and compassion at home. Maybe he's just starving.

Mandy has mental retardation, dark skin, and a big smile. She greets me by asking me when my birthday is. :) I helped her put some stickers in a book, and she grinned and smiled. She told me she was ten years old, and her favorite color is pink. What a jewel. [And side note here, I know a lot of people use the phrase, "That's retarded," but honestly, if I may, that bugs me. Retarded is a real, legit special need/mental illness, and it seems like it would hurt those who really are retarded or those with retarded family to say that. Just a thought . . . my soapbox speech for the day. :)]

Okay, one last little one. Seth is a blond head with what looks like I-just-got-out-of-bed hair. :) He is small, and again, it's his smile. That slight, happy boy smile that gets me. He plays Sorry with my sister, and she tells me later that he doesn't quite count right, but nonetheless, he wins! He's sooooo proud of himself. Honestly . . . he was beaming sunshine out his ears. :) His "vision" isn't impaired. He still smiles. Still grows. Still reaches. I have so much to learn from these kids.

I really hope I can go back and visit sometime. I know these kids aren't perfect. I know they've got a lot of dirt and scrapes and orneriness, but I know that there's a lot of loving that they need too. Maybe I can help with that. Maybe we can all help with that in the corner of our world. I hope your day is lovely. Grin big today. Dream. Don't be impaired by a lack of vision; be enabled by vision. It will change you. :)

Yours truly,
just Simply Danae :)

Oh, one last thing. I reaaaaaaaaaally like this song, and it ties in here. Enjoy the archaic language and the strong message. It is lovely. :)

Be Thou My Vision

Be Thou my Vision, Oh Lord of my heart;
Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art---
Though my best thought, by day or by night,
Waking or sleeping, Thy presence my light.

Be Thou my Wisdom, and Thou my true Word;
I ever with Thee and Thou with me, Lord;
Thou my great Father, I Thy true son,
Thou in me dwelling, and I with Thee one.

Riches I heed not, nor man's empty praise,
Thou mine inheritance, now and always;
Thou and Thou only, first in my heart,
High King of heaven, my Treasure Thou art.

High King of heaven, my victory won,
May I reach heaven's joys, O bright heav'n's Sun!
Heart of my own heart, whatever befall,
Still be my Vision, O Ruler of all. Amen.