adult baby hands
Last week I had a moment with a baby.
One I would have missed had I not stopped to look.

I was rushing through the checkout line grabbing some groceries. He was perched in a stroller behind me, squealing with delight.
I had to stop and see what in the world had captured his attention. Searching the angle of his eyes, I discovered what he saw.
It was the entrance to Trader Joes.
That was it.

Every time the sliding door opened, the baby cheered as a shopper entered the store.
And suddenly, we all felt like cheering with him.
Smiles swept across our check out line, and we were carried into his celebration.

He didn’t know enough to realize entering a store was not worth cheering about.
Or maybe we didn’t know enough to realize it was.

Right smack in the middle of the busyness of our days that baby gave us a little taste of God. And every shopper who entered his space felt like they had won an award.

I walked away wondering what life would be like if I lived like that baby. To assume that at least half the people you see on any given day are living courageously. To look them in the eye and cheer the brave choices they make. People you pass by are tirelessly caring for aging parents; others are working three jobs so they can feed their kids. Some are hanging on to battle an addiction. Or facing a battleground when they enter their homes.
You may have just passed someone who has been told they- or someone they love- has three months left to live.

If we took the time to really see each other, we’d all be cheering. Because we’d know there are people around us who needed courage just to get up

I’m thinking we should make that baby the grocery greeter.
It appears that last week, God already did.