I love them...all 40 of them.

"A hundred years from now, it will not matter what my bank account was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove. 

But the world may be different because I was important in the life of a child."

Forest E. Witcraft

A conversation I had earlier with my sister sparked so many thoughts and feelings I have had about my "children" in primary.

Like every neighborhood and every primary, ours is filled with a wide array of personalities which has given me the opportunity to learn and grow as I better understand each child that I am able to be around each week.  EACH of them holds a very special place in my heart and in my home.  EACH of them are loved because of who they are right now.  EACH of them are special to me.

I have been in two primary presidencies: the first time I was called under one bishopric to be the 1st counselor, the second time I was called under a different bishopric to be the president.  With each calling and setting apart I was blessed specifically to have a greater understanding and love for the special needs children in our primary.  Tears still well in my eyes as I ponder the feelings I had during those blessings.  

I find myself in silent prayer as to how I can better connect with these specific children, and how I can help our other primary children to better connect with them.  I pray that the Lord's hand will be with mine as I care for them.  I pray that parents of these children will know how much I look up to and love them too...and that I desire to care for their children the way the Lord does.

During class time a few weeks ago I was able to take a walk with one of these children around our church building.  In the past, this child hasn't ever liked holding my hand.  You can imagine how overwhelmed with emotion I felt when he reached out to grasp my hand as we walked.  We took five laps around the church, and when we came back to the primary room, he quietly sat on my lap as we talked about Jesus together.  Those 20 minutes with him were priceless to me.

For the past six months I have loved seeing another of our primary children slowly make his way back to my seat during sharing time.  Each time he walked down the aisle my amazing presidency would grab all of their things and move over so that he could sit between us.  Every Sunday I look forward to the moments that this child and I have to sit together, and although I know he desperately wants to go home, I enjoy the struggle it takes to have him stay with me as we sing the primary songs together.  Oh how I will miss him when he graduates in just a few months!

My life has been so much more full since serving all of the children in my neighborhood.  I hope these children and their parents know how much I love them...EACH of them...the way that our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ do.  As far as I'm concerned, I have 40 of the best children in the world.