Family

My loving family, due to their great love and concern for me, often question my wisdom and timing in my pregnancies. When I had my first baby, I was too young, too immature. When I had number 2, the gap was too near, what's wrong with me? When I had number 3, it was, you already have a girl and a boy, why are you having a 3rd one? What are you doing to yourself? Now that I'm pregnant with number 4, it's-don't you think 4 is too many? Isn't the gap too big?

Frankly, I fail to grasp their concerns. After all, I'm not living with them nor am I financially dependent on them, so I don't see why such a fuss. In fact, it irks me greatly because, I find their remarks downright condescending.

My brother tells me that I shouldn't let people's opinions bother me if I am confident of my beliefs and firm in my stand. But I don't think it has anything to do with that; instead it has everything to do with what I think is their opinion of me.

Being the youngest in the family, I've always been treated as a pest, being immature and irrational. I am indeed very different from my family members who 3 out of 5 are insufferable choleric and melancholy, whereas I am a carefree sanguine and phlegmatic combo. So naturally, they cannot fathom what goes through my mind!

Even the way I regard my faith and the way I live out my beliefs is vastly different from them, even though we believe in the same God! Me and babies being a case in point. Where they can see all the impracticalities of having babies, I excite in seeing God's provision and grace in our lives.

But one thing that my brother said did make sense, and that is they are my family and they care for my welfare. I should cherish all that because eventually, there will come a day when they have all passed on, and all will be gone.

And so, I forgive them.