Train up a child

The other night Logan and I were out later than usual grocery shopping after his basketball practice.  When we got home the girls and Rustin had already read scriptures together.  Logan got ready for bed and lay down.  After a while he came in and asked if I could read scriptures with him.  He said he had already done his own scripture reading, but that he wanted to read where our family is ready together too.  So, I went and read to him from the Joseph Smith History.  We recently finished reading the Book of Mormon together as a family and he has started over on his own.  He told me after I read that his goal is to finish the Book of Mormon on his own this year, and so far he has read at least a little everyday.  He also told me that he has a goal to earn 20 merit badges this year.  When he told me these goals I thought to myself, "that may be a little too ambitious for an 11 year old to actually accomplish,"  and I considered trying to temper his lofty ideal in order to keep him from being disappointed in himself.  But then I thought, "those are not completely impossible goals - if he believes he can do it, and we encourage it, it could happen!"  So instead I asked, "what can I do to support you in accomplishing those goals?"

Someone reading this who knows Logan may be surprised that he would have these goals and be as spiritually sensitive as this incident illustrates.  It's true he often struggles to control his actions and torments his siblings and parents mercilessly.  But he really is a great kid, with a kind heart and a desire to do what's right.  He is always the first to offer to pray in most circumstances, and he prays thoughtfully and sincerely.  I used to think that he would volunteer to pray just so that he wouldn't have to sit through a long mom prayer, but I know now that he does it because he feels it (most of the time).  I'm so grateful for moments like these that remind me of this good side of him.  I need to learn how to help him let it out more often.  I guess I need to just expect it more, and think of him this way in my head more than I currently do.  Although I know that a lot of who Logan is is just his nature, I'm pretty convinced that parents do have something to do with the way their children "turn out."  I'm always hopeful that I am "training up" my children in the right way (although I don't usually feel that I'm doing such a great job at it), but moments like these give me encouragement to keep trying.

This was a year and a half ago, when Logan found a couple of baby birds in our yard.  He spent a lot of time and emotional energy on trying to get those birds healthy and able to survive on their own.