November 29, 2021

“I will lie down and fall asleep in peace because you alone, Lord, let me live in safety.”

Psalm 4:8 (CEB)

This Thanksgiving, I sat at the little people’s table, joined by our youngest granddaughters Marie-Helene (4), Anne-Sophie, (7) and our daughter-in-law Kristie. Our table decided to take turns asking questions that everyone could answer.

One question was “If you could be any animal what would you be?” When my turn came, I thought for a minute about what answer might delight the grands, and then I answered, “I would be a unicorn and fly into little girls’ bedrooms when they sleep and sprinkle glitter that gives sweet dreams.”

As I got to the “fly into little girls’ bedrooms when they sleep” the big people table got perfectly silent. “Nana, do you know how bad that sounds?” And then the room dissolved into laughter. I knew where they were coming from and got a good case of giggles myself. When the laughter faded away, Anne-Sophie leaned over and whispered in my ear, “Nana, that’s what I want to be, too.”

In the mind of a child, Santa Claus brings gifts in a sleigh and reindeer and unicorns fly. I suspect that those early images of love and kindness and grace are just a foretaste of the reality of God. When I have trouble falling asleep, I repeat Psalm 4:8 as a reminder of God’s presence and peace. The next time I’m going to remember that sweet moment of affirmation from Anne-Sophie, and pray that I and those I love are sprinkled with the sweet dreams of safety.

Trusting in the Lord ~ Anne