Tuesday, November 22, 2022

The Gospel of Note Making.

 



Sarah started writing a note for Che's lunchbox the day she started Mothers-Day-Out just as she'd done for the girls.  

Somewhere along the way, I've kidnapped the task, to my wife's chagrin I think, and I absolutely delight in it!

It's pretty much the extent of my writing anymore.  

It's mostly a matter of energy and I don't have much.  

What I do have, I economize, carefully choosing how it's spent. 

Anyway, every morning I write a note to Sarah followed by one for Che. 

Sarah's are straight to the point, just the way she likes it, though it takes me forever saying what I mean using so few words.  

Che's notes however know no boundaries. 

I go a little nuts on them but they bring me, and sometimes her, so much joy.  

"Everyone wanted to eat your doughnut Da," she laughs after school referring to one I'd drawn and colored on her note. 

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Che laughs pretending to eat the image, "everybody passed it around and took a bite."

I am beside myself with joy, retrieve the spit soaked paper and keep it for prosperity. 

I've taken to saving the notes to arrange, photograph and send them to Che who enjoys getting texts from anyone. 

Sometimes, most often in the middle of the night after I've already been awake for hours, the energy and focus will be enough to write something else. 

It used to be oh-so-easy but now it's exhausting unless the Weed and the Chemo are dancing harmoniously inside and I feel good enough to try. 

I spend forever writing Sarah a 10 word love note. 

Then I spend another half-of-forever creating Che's note. 

{I used to delight making Cassidy's lunch bag during her freshman year of High School and would colorfully draw "BAG Of DOOM" or "I'm as good a time as anyone else. CALL ME!" on her lunch bag but now as a sophomore she has no need for me anymore.}

So, the point of all of that is this!

Independently of my note making, Che made notes on her own this morning.  

The first was to Sarah. 

The second to me.  

Last is to our Dalmatian Lainey.  

There's no school this week, no lunch boxes for me to put notes inside, no reason for a 6 year old girl to consider, much less care, but she does.  

Note making, letter writing, creating something out of nothing for someone else is Holy stuff, rooted in love, shared in partnership with God somehow, though I don't know how. 

I arrange the notes and snap this picture.  

The Gospel of Post-it note love letters merit either being hidden in the heart as Sarah does, or when I have it in me, sharing them on social media as my way of making disciples in every nation, baptizing them in love (Matthew 28:19). 

Because that's what love does.