Every week, our toddler's energy and volume levels tend to build slowly, ominously, and eventually exceed my own comfort levels for the proper public behavior. And every time, I end up hauling him out of the chapel, whispering sharply in his ear, and holding him still in the foyer. And almost every week, I end up next to this painting, admiring one tiny detail in this depiction of the Sermon on the Mount. This little girl, like my three kids, is nearly oblivious to the sermon. The beauty of the gospel, untold blessings, inheriting the earth, all of it seems to mean nothing to her. Instead she's enraptured, not by the Savior or his teachings, but by a tiny, orange butterfly. A fluttering distraction. A flitting piece of living beauty. A pretty little bug. And every week, as I am distracted by this child's distraction, holding my own squirming ball of distraction, I remind myself being distracted is okay. These kids are being normal; distraction and energetic outbursts are normal; my kids are normal. And that's completely okay. #lds #sunday #HisDay #DayOfRest #SundayBest #ldschurch
