My parents-in-law are in town from Toronto, visiting us for 10 days. It’s great to have them with us because we only see them once or twice a year (not counting Skype video calls). Do you know the best thing about them being here?
It’s not that my mother-in-law cooks us delicious food. Which is amazing.
It’s not that my father-in-law fixes everything that doesn’t work in our house. Which is awesome.
It’s not that my mother-in-law washes the dishes. Which is super.
It’s not that my father-in-law scrubs our pots and pans so they look completely new. Which is stupendous.
All the things my in-laws do for us while they are here is completely and utterly mad-wicked-crazy-sick (if you are unfamiliar with Aussie slang, you may misunderstand “mad-wicked-crazy-sick” to mean something negative when, in fact, they are synonymous with “really good”). But all these things they do for us aren’t the best thing.
The absolute best thing about my parents-in-law being with us is that they share our love and delight for our baby girl, Alena.
Sure, most people think Alena (we call her Allie) is cute and adorable. All Allie has to do is flash a smile or hiccup and it will draw “AWs” and “OOOs” from the crowd. But no one really understands how much Olive and I delight in our baby as much as Allie’s grandparents do.
They, like us, were enamoured when Allie tried eating congee for the first time.
They, like us, love watching Allie babble.
Their hearts, like ours, warm every time Allie smiles or laughs.
If you have in-laws, you may understand that it takes time to get to know them and have them feel like family. My 5 years of knowing them will never compare with my wife’s 30 years of knowing them. But I feel like the experience of having a child has really brought me closer to my in-laws. And I think the reason is that we have this child that we find joy in together.
I wonder if relationships are built more from two people sharing a love for someone (or something) more that things done for each other.
It also makes me wonder if God appreciates it more that we share His love for His Son Jesus, rather than us trying to serve Him and do all these things for Him.
photo credit: S P Photography via photo pin cc