The Glass is Definitely Half Full

Leighton has become extremely concerned about her appearance. She wants high heeled everything and will only wear dresses or skirts. She is obsessed with the mirror and spends a good bit of time looking into it lovingly. I have been trying to think of a way to teach her about the beauty inside.

Well, I was reading through the newest Better Homes & Gardens this past week. Leighton was next to me making sure she wasn't missing out on any neat houses, pretty shoes or makeup. The advertisement for Operation Smile was on the next page. Leighton was horrified at the pictures of these children with cleft palates and lips.

I asked her if she would like to be friends with any of these kids. She scrunched up her nose and replied, "Ewww, No!" I asked her why and she said, "They look weird!" I explained to her that these were children who were born this way and that they needed surgery to repair their birth defect.

She continued to look at the pictures as I spoke more about the children and how they were made fun of or not wanted by their families just because of the way they looked. I asked her. "What if Jensyn was born with a cleft palate, would you still want to be her sister?" "Of course, I love her!" was the reply I gratefully heard. I then went on, "Don't you think that these children deserve someone to love them and be friends with them?" At this point, I thought I could see her coming around.

She sat on the couch and studied the pictures some more. I watched her as she started smiling at some of the pictures and making comments like, 'Oh, look at this little boy, he has such pretty eyes.' 'This little boy looks so sad. I would be his friend to make him happy.' 'This little girl is so happy.' At this point, I figured the lesson was a success, so I got up to start laundry. Leighton brought the magazine to me a couple of minutes later with this gem:

"Mom, you know what? All of these kids can smell their own breath whenever they want!!"

Talk about looking on the bright side. I had to go in the other room where she couldn't see me, to laugh so hard I cried. When I came back, I was so proud!