Going back to school for my accounting degree would be good for my five-year-old daughter in the long run, but for now it kept me from spending time with her.
So in the free minutes I did have I made sure Georgia came first. We played “Lion King,” her favorite game, with a play set of figurines from the movie. Timon, the funny meerkat, was her favorite.
One Saturday afternoon I studied in the yard while Georgia shuffled through the fall leaves with her figurines. The darkness snuck up on us.
“Mommy,” Georgia said, “Timon is missing!”
We tore through the leaves, but Timon was hopelessly lost. “We’ll try again tomorrow,” I told a very sad Georgia when I tucked her into bed. If I can find the time after school, I thought.
I felt a stab of guilt. I knew how much Timon meant to Georgia. What kind of mom was I if I couldn’t put her problem first?
The next day I rushed home after school and dove right into those leaves. The light was fading fast. Lord, I need angels to help me sweep away this covering!
I’d let accounting class come before my daughter. I turned back toward the house. A perfectly circular clearing in the leaves made me take a surprised step back. Sitting in the middle was Timon.
Thanks to a helpful angel, Georgia would always know that no matter what was going on in my life, she was first in my heart.
