I went grocery shopping. A few short hours later, a couple dozen of my favorite kids in the world would all be in the same place. We wanted to feed them... hang out with them. But there's not a lot of foods elementary and middle school age kids will all eat.
So I bought hot dogs.
I bought enough to feed forty, slightly overshooting our highest attendance. We got to the church and started getting dinner ready. Occasionally I would peek out at all the kids that had shown up, but never even thought to count them.
The next thing I knew, a volunteer came into the kitchen declaring there are "at least 35 kids" plus adults waiting in the fellowship hall. I had forty hot dogs. Do you know any kid who only eats one hot dog?
I walked over to the stove where the hot dogs were cooking. Looking into the water, I quickly prayed "You've done it before. Do it again. Use what we have, make it enough." I walked away, feeling kind of silly.
We had a team of kids come in to put the hot dogs in the buns. Another team of kids served the plates to their friends. I stood in the doorway and watched as kids started coming back, saying, "everyone has a hot dog. Everyone has something to eat."
I looked back at the kitchen counter where a dozen full plates still sat there, waiting to be given away.
I started counting, doing the math in my head. Suddenly kids started coming back from seconds. And then volunteers started eating as well.
Still. There were hot dogs on the counter.
I had a two eleven year old boys approach me and ask if they could help clean up. I watched as they took away empty plates and pushed chairs into place and came back to the kitchen, asking for more ways to help.
My heart was full to bursting, as it so often is when I find myself in this place. I am so proud of these children, whom I have come to think of as "mine". So proud of the adults who stepped up to lead.
And as I came to the realization of what had just occurred... I just couldn't stop smiling.
At the end of the night, there were seven hot dogs left on a plate.
Who's surprised?
No comments:
Post a Comment