“Miss Snephanie!”

“Yes sir, little man?”

“Hers said hers gots five deers in her house!”

“She did?”

Took all I had not to laugh at my little John Deere wearing three year old when his eyes got as big as his head over his friend having “five deers in her house”.  I knew what they both meant.  They meant that she had five deer in her back yard, but the way they told it was precious.  Maybe I could teach this thing called pre-school.  It had taken eight months from the time I walked across that stage and shook the President’s hand to land a job.  Here I was, teaching at a church pre-school.

Except, truthfully, pre-school was teaching me.  It was from these little people that I was reminded what it was like to see with a child-like faith.

“Do you guys all know the story of Noah and the Ark?”

“Yeah!”

“Yes ma’am?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“And what happened in that story?”

“Noah just gots on this ol’ big boat, Miss Snephanie.”

“Hey, Miss Snephanie.  Yesterday one time, I just got on this big ol’ boat with my dad.”

Noah got on a boat with his Father, just like that little one did.  It really was that simple, wasn’t it?  I also learned ways to see people, not differences.  In a room where America, Russia, India, and Mexico were all represented in their faces– these kids just saw other kids.  It didn’t matter that they didn’t look the same, they could still play together.  At a table where every seat was taken, they always made room for one more during snack time.  They lived life innocently.

For a while, I thought that maybe the Lord forgot I majored in Youth Ministry and preferred thirteen year olds to the three year olds when He dropped me into a pre-school classroom.  I had no idea that I would get a phone call during Christmas Program practice from a guy who wanted me to come see people with him…