Sugar, as I'm sure you know, sometimes it feels hard to accept any credit for these moments when our kids shine. I get the sense it's God's grace working in them (and certainly working in me as I parent them!).

Cheryl, thank you for reading, and for responding emotionally as well as in writing. It means a lot!

Daisy, yes, those surprises from our kids can be very good. I'm sure as my kids get older there will be some unpleasant surprises, too, but I feel a great sense of peace about the people they are becoming.

Trina, I had great examples of compassion in my parents, and Jason did from his parents, as well. So there's definitely some of that spirit of giving woven into our beings. Sometimes I just wonder if it skips a generation, though! Like after watching my parents give and give, there's part of me that feels the need to protect my time and my self, at least more than they did. Now my kids are on this earth to go all out as the pendulum swings back the other way, and to inspire me in the process. :)

Lance, in a post several months ago, when I opened up my blog to questions, I wrote that compassion was the one thing I wished for the world. I really do think it would solve all of the world's problems—that compassion is the key to bringing more of heaven to earth. I love the story of your kids caring for the injured bird. As you said, it's a "simple act of love," and maybe that's what we often miss as adults—the simple part. We try to fix things in big, complicated ways, and forget about the small, simple acts.