Oh, To Be a

Happy Baby Again

By Paula Matthews

Have you ever noticed that

If I were a happy baby snuggled inside loving arms, I’d be fat happy babies are very
and warm and cozy, tucked away from this world’s harms. I similar in their attitudes
would sing and kick my feet up and make happy vocal sounds, and behaviors? If they are
knowing I was loved and nurtured and secure all around. No sitting in a stroller with a
matter what would happen, no matter where I’d be, I would
bottle in one hand, they
still be a happy baby knowing that someone dear loved me.
are often amusing
themselves with the other
hand, either twirling their
hair, or holding a foot or
kicking their legs or feet up
and down in the air. And, happy babies always sing and make pleasant jabbering
sounds to themselves regardless of who is listening. Happy babies have a casual
manner of observing the rest of the world with a sense of wonderment. They
patiently stare at the birds, at the sky and seem not to have a care in the world.

They seem to be lost in their world of contentment no matter what is going on

around them. Where does that come from… and how do we get it back as adults?
Babies are an interesting study because they represent an innocence that we as
adults have lost. They also represent a new beginning which for many of us may
seem impossible under certain circumstances. And, their feelings of security have
nothing to do with their status in life or what they wear, or where they live or
where they got their college degrees.

Happy babies are secure because they know there is someone they can trust to
be there to loving nurture and provide for them no matter what. Their world only
revolves around them and the ones that they love.
So, I ask, who can you trust to be there to love, nurture and provide for you no
matter what? And, if someone offered such today, would you take their offer or
would you pride-fully turn them away, desiring to be self-sufficient?

Several years ago, I had a very demanding job dealing with disgruntled and angry
clients on a daily basis. And on this one day, I seemed to have more problems
than solutions, and was quickly running on empty when an elderly woman walked
in the office insisting on reading to me from her book of poems. It was surreal
that in the middle of chaos this woman wanted to read poetry. So, I let her read
and what I heard struck my heart with such compassion. These were not ordinary
poems. This woman read poems that she wrote as a child survivor of the
Holocaust. She read poems about being happy as a child in her loving family and
how all was shattered when the Nazi herded them like cattle to a concentration
camp.

This woman read from a young girl’s perspective, how she felt cursed of God and
wanted nothing more to do with her Jewish faith or the God of her fathers. We
were all in tears. What could we say after hearing this? I read the Diary of Anne
Frank in high school, and when I later went to Amsterdam and visited the Frank
home, I was moved that a young girl could remain so optimistic after witnessing
such cruelty. But what this woman read was not optimistic. She questioned why
God would allow the Nazi’s to kill her entire family and leave her behind. This
once secure and happy little girl no longer wanted to live in this cruel and
murderous world.

When the elderly woman closed her book I remember asking what kept her
motivated to live all those years. Instantly, she wiped her tears and said that
coming to America gave her a new life, a new love and a family that she cherished
more than life itself. This proud grandmother talked about how happy and
successful her children and grandchildren were in this country. How evil men
could not destroy them completely. She alone was a seedling from her family of
origin, and now she proudly saw how she, the lone survivor brought forth the
fruitful vines of a family even stronger and more affluent than before.
I will never forget what that elderly Jewish woman deposited in my heart that
day. She believed that it was God’s plan for her to survive and see that there was
still life and goodness in the world after such a tragedy.

We may never regain our innocence to be those happy babies ever again, but we
can find contentment in this shared human experience. I believe that God made
all nations from the same blood because no matter where we exist in the world,
we all are born and then we die. What we share in the interim is our experiences
of living and having conquered the things that were meant to destroy us. We also
share love and happiness with those closest to us because tomorrow is not
promised to any of us. Let us be content and find joy today, in each and every
experience.

For me, I find comfort not only in sharing with others, but also I have a secret
place under the shadow of the Almighty. It’s under his wings that I trust. And
because I do, I can find happiness and contentment in almost any situation. It’s
not a chore; it’s a choice I choose to make each day. Some people see life as
either a cup half empty or one that is half full. I want the Psalm 23 cup that
continually overflows with all the goodness and mercy of God following me every
day, all day, in every situation, all the days of my life. I refuse to have life any
other way!

So, I say thank you to all those survivors of such atrocities as the Holocaust and
other acts of genocide in the world. In your survival we are reminded of the
unconquerable human spirit that can overcome any devastation and stand
resilient against the evils of this world and declare that no matter what comes our
way, we will survive to bring forth a new generation of happy babies totally
innocent yet armed with the truth about where we have been as a people; our
hope of a bright future, even stronger than before.

Paula Matthews is a Bible Teacher and Author of the eBook, The War Journal (1999-2010) Volume I, which is
available on Amazon.com. This article and poem is from an excerpt of the book entitled “Happy Babies.”