Mar
12
2021
Jabberwock
Posted in Discipleship 4 Comments
I heard a story that touched my heart.
I was listening to a Bible study on the book of Proverbs.
This day, the focus was on parenting.
Even though my five children are raised, I was still interested.
A story was told about a young boy who was left in charge of his little sister.
His mother had to go out for a short time.
After she left, this boy who loved to draw and paint, decided to paint a picture of his sister.
He was so engrossed in his painting, he didn’t realize that he got paint all over everything.
His mother came home and walked into the room.
She looked around and saw paint on the table and the floor.
She saw the picture of her little daughter attached to the easel.
She went up to her son and hugged him; Oh, you painted a picture of your sister.
The young boy, now a man who is indeed an artist, remembers that day fondly.
That is the day I became a painter, he said.
How differently it could have turned out if his mother had only seen the mess.
How differently he would have viewed his gift if she had not encouraged him.
Words matter.
Tone matters.
Facial expressions matter.
Eye contact matters.
I remember when I was in elementary school.
I was probably about eight years old.
We had an assignment to write a story about a word that was on the blackboard.
The word was, Jabberwock.
Little did I know then that Jabberwock is an actual word in literature.
The word was included in a nonsense poem, Jabberwocky, written by Lewis Carroll.
The poem was about the killing of a creature named the Jabberwock.
Since we did not know that fact, our assignment was to describe the Jabberwock.
I went home and I remember being so excited to write about the Jabberwock.
It sounded so silly to me.
I imagined a creature with noodles for legs and large eyes that went this way and that.
I imagined that the Jabberwock liked to eat spaghetti.
I had no trouble writing the assigned number of words.
In fact, I remember going over the amount a bit.
I cut cardboard from a cereal box and covered it with floral contact paper.
I made a front and back cover and attached it with a gold book ring.
It was bigger than my book bag so I took great care bringing it to school.
It didn’t have to have a front and a back cover, but how could it not have one?
This was my professional book.
It was the first book I was ever asked to write.
I remember seeing my Jabberwock book on the teacher’s desk.
I was so proud of my story and hoped she would be, too.
There it sat all day, sticking out a little bigger than the rest.
I could see it easily simply because the floral contact paper stood out.
The next day, our Jabberwock stories were handed back to us.
I remember the teacher lingering at my desk as she handed my book to me.
You wrote a wonderfully, imaginative story, she said with a smile.
That is the day I became a writer.
Later in my elementary school years, the Waltons were on television every Thursday night.
John Boy wrote stories about his family.
John Boy wanted to be a published author.
John Boy noticed the things that no one else seemed to notice and had to write about them.
How I related to his character.
How I admired the real John Boy, Earl Hamner Jr, for writing such heartwarming stories.
Jabberwock, a teacher’s comment, and the Waltons inspired me to write.
You never know who or what might inspire you.
The mother’s comment to her son encouraged him to be a painter.
The teacher’s comment about my story encouraged me to be a writer.
Sometimes we have to see beyond the mess and the immaturity.
Sometimes we have to pull back the curtain and see the gift.
Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. (James 1:17)
It only takes a few extra minutes to encourage someone.
To a child, that encouragement is nourishment for their soul.
That encouragement can validate a gift that is just beginning to blossom.
It may be just the thing that helps them press on.
Disregard the mess.
See beyond the immature style and form.
Your encouragement will fertilize the soil.
Then, just watch it grow!
Beautiful reminder!
Sherie,
I think we all need the reminder to be more encouraging.
It matters!
Gina
Oh how I relate to this! If only all parents and teachers realized that true creativity needs room to grow and encouragement to excel. Fortunately my parents encouraged my art talent and art teachers did too. But often children don’t have this; in fact, our brains are geared to make the rational part more dominant than the creative side. That’s why many adults never get beyond childlike drawings, especially when they are criticized by an adult. I’m so glad you were encouraged–I get such blessings from your blogs. I miss you and hope we can start classes with you in the fall!!
Thank you for your encouragement, Sue!
If anyone understands, you do!
You are so talented and creative.
How blessed we both were to receive such encouragement when we were young.
Gina