My little copycats

Claire and I are similar creatures. We are both female, wear glasses, have thick hair and little to no gag reflex, and are crazy about that man she calls Daddy. (Most of our family knows what I call him but I won't say it here since it would probably embarrass him.) Besides all this, she loves to do what I do. I usually take off my glasses before eating. She started doing this a few weeks ago as well. Then earlier this week we were dragging cut branches to the road. It was getting pretty warm out so I pulled up my long sleeves before grabbing another branch. Claire saw me and started tugging at her own sleeves. She didn't want to help drag again until I helped her get them in the proper position. Noah is a bit of a parrot as well, though he tends to imitate Doug's activities more (as he should).

This is very cute at times, but it's also very scary. When I see her whine or selfishly clutch a toy or speak in an unkind tone of voice, is she showing her own selfishness, or is it a reflection of mine? I know that noone has to show her how to do those things; it comes naturally to all of us. I've always thought that people who believe that humans are basically good and just do bad things due to poor influences must not have ever been around children very much. A two-year-old left to her own devices is not what I would call a good moral being. I'm not bashing Claire here; she has an extremely sweet temperament and makes me feel like a pretty good parent. But she is not perfect, just like her Mama (and Daddy).

I, as a born-again believer in Christ, have the power to resist these inborn human impulses of greediness, unkindness, impatience, and self-centeredness (see Galatians 5:22-23). But having three little pairs of eyes watching my every move has been revealing. It's like carrying a mirror around all day. Am I modeling the fruits of the Spirit to my impressionable little copycats (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control)? I pray that the answer is "yes". And for those times that the answer is a definite "no", I have found myself practicing the art of humility. For that's what it takes to apologize to a 4-year-old for speaking harshly. I've found parenting in general to be one big exercise in humility. But hopefully they'll copy that, too.