Case in point: my little niece, Lexi. Lexi has always been a quiet kiddo, and compared to her sister, I mean reallllly quiet! She's very studious, just looking at you with a neutral, simple face that seems as though she's looking into your very soul. Her little personality is coming out a little more each week as she develops and grows farther away from the infant years. But more than any child I have ever known, I can see that Lexi has a very strong connection with the other side of the veil.
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| Our sweet little Lexi Ann |
Several months ago, my sister told us that Lexi loved to look at the pictures of Jesus they had around their house and at church, which has grown as she's gotten older. But Lexi doesn't just look at the pictures. When Lexi sees a picture of Jesus, she automatically moves towards it, reaching for it with all her baby strength. She cries, "Ses-ses-ses!" for "Jesus". She is very adamant about reaching that picture and will break down if it isn't brought down to her level.
I wanted to see this for myself last week, so I grabbed the Gospel Art Book and opened to a picture of the Savior. I held it up and called to her, "Lexi, who's this?" She looked for only a moment and with a knowing expression on her face started crawling towards me. Now, she isn't able to stand up all the way on her own yet, but tries to do what she can. When she realized I wasn't going to bend over and give it to her, she tried harder than I've ever seen her to stand on her own two miniature feet as if doing so would accomplish her goal. I finally handed the book to her and she held onto it, just stroking and staring at it with a big smile on her face. Take into account that Lexi is only 13 months old! Kiddos this young don't usually have this type of recognition quite yet, trust me, I'm a specialist in child development.
It was one of the most tender, touching moments I have ever seen in my life after witnessing my grandfather pass to the other side. This beautiful little angel who's been on this earth for only a little over a year has a recognition of the Savior that is far beyond her age, and the only reason why is because she's closer to the veil than the rest of us.
Allow me to share one more story with you. My second cousin Marci passed away some years ago from cancer. One day her sister Annie was visiting her grave with her family. She left the kids in the car as she and her husband went to place some flowers on Marci's grave. When she and her husband returned, her 4-year-old son called out, "Mom, where did Aunt Marci go? Where did Marci go? She was right there." W.O.W. I was in awe when I heard this encounter and it has stayed in the front of my mind ever since.
If we ever think we need to feel closer to our Heavenly Father and our true home, sometimes all we need to do is talk with or observe of a child. Think like a child. Allow the worries and cares of the world to fall away and go back to how you thought and felt as a child without any doubt that Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ are here, that they love us, and that they-and all those other angels-are right there, watching over us, walking with us.
We know who they are, we know them better than we think we do. We just don't remember. Children remember more as they come into this world. They gravitate towards the Savior. And I think in this case, we can take a lesson from them and do the same.
Cheers,
Robyn
