La Petite Belle prayed a beautiful prayer last night.
It began something like this …
“God, thank You for this day.
Thank You that I have a family that loves me.
Thank You for my mommy, daddy, sister, and Roxy.
Thank You that I got to play outside today with my friends.
Thank You that we have food to eat.
Thank You that we have clothes to wear.
Thank You that we have a nice house to live in.
And thank You that we’re not hobos …. “
Huh?
Hobos?
La Petite Belle has a fascination with, as she calls them, “hobos.”
I keep telling her that they’re not really called “hobos” anymore. We just call them homeless.
In my understanding, hobos lived in the Depression era and carried sticks with kerchiefs attached to make a little carry-all and snuck on trains to get from one place to another. I think they also played harmonicas around bonfires. Correct if I’m wrong.
Here’s what I think of when I hear the word “hobo.”
La Petite Belle really has a heart for these so-called “hobos” and wants to know why we just can’t take them home to our house, which we’ve had many other conversations about.
She actually gave a homeless man her M & Ms when he came to the church for help. She has no fear.
God, show me how to nurture this in her while protecting her at the same time.
And thank You that we’re not hobos.
What a sweet girl. Maybe she can start with a homeless animal. Slightly less dangerous than a human.
Oh my what a sweet compassionate heart!!! I pray that as she grows, she draws closer to God so that he can develop that gift for his glory!!!
She has a sweet heart, for sure.
Such a sweet and tender heart!
Nurture that gift in her – without bringing the hobos home with you :}
Is there a homeless shelter around? Maybe she would enjoy helping to serve meals on a Saturday???
Hugs!
I really enjoyed this post and showed it to my son. He really liked it to.
What a special and tender daughter you are raising! That's so sweet! She'd enjoy taking them PB&J sandwiches sometime, wouldn't she?
“Thank you we are not hobos”… I totally laughed out loud. I was in a I had to get up early this morning funk, but that was totally worth it. Thank you!!
That was really cute! Where I grew up we had “hobos” picking through our trash daily. I always wanted to feed them and my father would get upset because he was supporting yet another mouth. We knew some of them by name.
I sometimes think how differently my kids are growing up and I think they’d have culture shock if they were raised same as me. It makes me laugh.
-FringeGirl
Don’t you just love their tender hearts! My mind went to the exact same place when you said hobo. So I think your definition is right on!
So sweet!
Too sweet!!!
Mama Belle, I’ve missed my visits here! I just got back from a week in Iowa and was not on line at all while I was there. I feel a bit out of touch!
What a sweet post! I love it. 🙂 I love that simple yet profound perspective that kids have.
How sweet was her prayer. So simple and really thankful for the things that matter. Out of the mouths of babes….Her innocence is precious.
How sweet she must be. Oh if we were all more like that.
She has such a sweet heart!!!…
You probably have a lot of PBJs and bologna sandwiches to help make in your future. Thanks for sharing this it is beautiful!
What a wonderful sweet heart she has!! Great sense a humor to boot ain’t bad either!!
I love her. I realized I don’t know her, but I’m pretty impressed. I love hobos too. And I always have. As I grew and matured (a little), I learned how to be safe and still love. She will too 🙂
Such a sweet spirit God has given her.
This was SO sweet. It made my heart happy! I think the best thing you can do is keep letting her minister to them with you by her side! Or, see if you can find a family in a shelter to mentor. A mother and her children. I work in Philadelphia and I know there are lots of Mothers that would love to take their kids to a nice place to play. It gets very depressing in shelters. I love her heart!
Very sweet prayer and spirit! 🙂
Mamacita Belle, I am thankful for you…and the fact you’re not a hobo b/c then you wouldn’t be able to crack us up and give me a headache from snortin’ my Diet Coke up my nose while reading your posts!
I gave you a most appropriate award my bloggy friend because if there was ever a professional lemonade maker – it is YOU!
OK, I’m rolling right now! That is just hilarious!…and precious too 🙂
Awwww…
What a compassionate heart. My middle son is like that; I so wonder what God is going to do with those little ones…you are wise to ask for that balance as her parent. 🙂