“Are they twins?” The lady smiled as she gestured to Chase and Karsten – brothers born 22 months apart.
The man bent forward to talk to Chase, who will be six in December: “I have a granddaughter who is three like you, too!”
As we sat at the lunch table one day last week, we talked about who had been born first in our family and Chase kept insisting he was the baby. We tried to point out several times, in several ways, that he is older than Karsten, yet he refused to accept it and finally, the source of his reasoning became clear: “But I’m the baby of the family because I’m the smallest!” And just like that, it was spoken. He sees and understands – on some level – the radiation damage in it’s unfolding.
I’ve considered this moment for some time and it’s here. Karsten is as tall as Chase. It’s neck-and-neck, but it’s happened. Karsten, at nearly four, stands as tall and far more broad than his older brother. And Aidan, though a scant 12-months older, stands nearly a head taller than both of them.
It’s heartbreaking to see this and it’s precious because Chase is alive, and it never stops being amazing to hear his wise, old voice come out of such a tiny body.
So, I’ll keep the smaller size of clothing in the drawer knowing Chase will probably use them a little longer. And if stature were measured in experience, he’d already be ten feet tall.
Moment by moment.
“The Lord doesn’t see things the way you see them. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7b
