Maggie's Heart

Pets come and go in this house. We dont really do dogs or cats. We only have fish and hermit crabs and neither seems to last very long. When Maggalou, our last hermit crab, passed, Maggie decided she'd rather go back to having a fish for a pet. I convinced her to wait until after we finished our traveling for the year, but now that we are settled back in Valdese she was ready to resume her roll as "fish mama."

So... today I took her to Walmart to pick out a new Beta fish. We only get the females because I find them less smelly and today they only had 3 available to pick from. I took down the first, a pretty blue with very short fins. Maggie didnt seem very interested. I pulled out the second, a drab red who didnt look so hot, and set that container aside. Then I pulled out the last fish, a vibrant and beautiful blue who looked quite healthy and strong. I held this one up and asked Maggie if she'd like to buy it.

Maggie said, "what about that red one?"

I went on to explain to her that the red one was not very pretty and didnt look very healthy.

Maggie said, "great, I'll take her! I love her."

This isnt the first time Maggie's picked the underdog. I felt terrible for suggesting that she look only at the appearance of the fish. What am I teaching my kids by suggesting they only buy the prettiest this or the best looking that? And what are my kids teaching me? Maggie saw right through the outward appearance and fell instantly in love with Rosy despite her poor coloring and general weakness.

I sure am glad for Maggie's heart. I love her compassion and care for the weak and downtrodden. She always seems to know who needs a hug and who needs a little extra love. In fact, she not only knows - she acts on this amazing intuition.

So welcome to the family Rosy. We're glad your here. I am especially glad that every time I look at you, help Maggie feed you, and clean your bowl I will be reminded of God's unfailing, unconditional love for all of us... no matter what we look like.

"Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7