Terrible Twos

"No!" cried Tynlee as her little brother pushed a pile of magazines off the coffee table. She sighed and turned to her mother. "What's with Bridger today? He made a mess with his food at breakfast, drew all over my math homework, and tried to drown my stuffed animals in the bathtub!""Some people call his age the terrible twos," said Mom. "But I prefer to think of it as the curious twos. It's an age when children are learning about the world and want to get into everything."Tynlee grinned as she rearranged the magazines. "It must be hard having such a naughty little boy after having a perfect child like me."Mom laughed. "You'll get a chance to see yourself at that age when Aunt Gina comes next week. She has a video she made the summer we went to her wedding. You were only two years old then.""Oh, good," Tynlee said. "I'll make sure Bridger watches it and sees how a two-year-old is supposed to act!"The next week, Tynlee and her family gathered around her aunt's computer to see the video. "Oh, look!" Tynlee said as the screen showed the family seated around the table. "That's me in my high chair, saying grace--how sweet.""Look again," said Aunt Gina.Tynlee gasped. "I can't believe it! I'm pouring milk on the floor." More scenes passed. "Why is the dog hiding under the chair?" asked Tynlee."You pulled his tail," replied Dad."Here you are dressed for the wedding," said Mom. "You did look really cute."Tynlee smiled at herself wearing a fancy white dress with blue bows.In the next scene, the white dress was covered with brown streaks. "Just when we were about to leave for the church, you got outside and played in a mud puddle," Aunt Gina explained.Tynlee grinned as Bridger climbed up on her lap. "Hey, buddy. From now on, I'll be more patient with you. I can see I had a lot to learn when I was your age too."Mom nodded thoughtfully. "That's exactly how we should treat our brothers and sisters in Christ too. We need to be patient with one another as we learn and grow in our relationship with Jesus. We all make mistakes, but Jesus forgives us and helps us learn to do better. We should be that way too." – Ruth McQuilkin