Our Ray of Sunshine

BIBLICAL POINTS OF REFERENCE:

"Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God."

~Matthew 5:9

"Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths are peace."

~Proverbs 3:17

There are many people in my life who say that my youngest sister, Rachel, is my mini-me--I would definitely say that is true. We're both super happy, super weird, and super bossy ladies, not to mention we both have a knack for the performing arts. We even look alike, but something that sets Rachel apart from all four of us Beltowski girls is that she is just a ray of sunshine--all the time! Rachel is three years younger than my next youngest sister, Grace, and five years younger than my twin, Jackie, and I. This means that while the three of us older girls were busy growing up, Rachel had to find ways to play by herself because of such big age differences. That sounds kind of sad, right? I'll admit that Rachel missed having sisters to play with, but she rose to the challenge of making herself happy like a pro: She learned how to be in her own little world, she became quite the self-taught gymnast (she can walk on her hands, no joke), and certainly spent a lot of time climbing, jumping, and bouncing her way through our house. And what amazes me is that after all that, after spending so much time being by herself, she still makes everyone else around her happy. My biggest question: How can that be? I think everyone has something to learn from Rachel; she surrounded herself with good activities, activities that made her a better person, and she picked good role models, such as Audrey Hepburn, to help her grow up strong and kind. And she was only a child when she decided to do that! I don't think I can ever take my youngest sister for granted, because she is a whole lot smarter than most people. So my challenge for you ladies today is to not look at kids, whether they are boys or girls, as immature or not understanding of the world around them; they understand and know more than they say. Those very special people, like my sister Rachel, have a light inside of them that Jesus Christ shines through. Don't let their age define how you treat them. Your Laughing Sister, Callahan

Check out the HAPPINESS and WISDOM quotes pages for more inspiration!