Nothing Like Being Humbled By A Child

I have been going with my oldest little one to his classes here in Argentina.  He was struggling to grasp the language, keep up in school, and was shutting down, not doing any work, falling behind and worse yet, acting out, getting in trouble and being sent to the office or home.  (That was one amazing run-on sentence! : )

Now, I know it can be hard to understand little kids, even in your own language.  I often have had to have parents "translate" for me when talking to their little ones.  Well, sometimes I even need Heather to give me the interpretation for what my own little ones are saying!  lol.  But, it is really humbling to know that a 2nd grader can blow you away with their grasp of the language in comparison to yourself.  : )

Sure, I know a lot of really big words that they don't know yet.  But the reality is, they are WAY more fluent in Spanish than I am.  And they can understand each other!  Often the kids in the class come over to talk to Nate or to myself.  Often, I can barely understand what they are saying.  It is FAR easier to speak with an adult.  They have much clearer pronunciation, diction, etc.  They also have a much broader vocabulary.  If I don't understand a word or phrase, they can think of another way to get their point across. 

Kids can't do that.  In fact, when you don't understand them and ask them to repeat themselves, they look at you kind of funny.  Sort of like, "What?  You don't understand me?  I am just a 2nd grader.  Are you dumb or something?"  Then they make that funny face that conveys exactly that point without having to say a word...Awesome.  : )

So, I am helping my son by leaps and bounds, helping the class to be more calm and collected, helping the teachers to connect with my son, helping him to ramp up his education, learning a ton myself, making lots and lots of new connections in the community, etc, etc.  - What is a little humiliation compared to all that?  lol.  (By the way, I think that run-on sentence was even better than the first one.)

If you're going through a humiliating time, hang in there.  God wants to teach you lots and use you greatly in the middle of your embarrassing moments.  It won't kill you.  And good things really could come of it, if you press through your emotional discomfort.  : )

God bless & Good Night -
Paz & Fuerzas Nuevas -