A Very Human Father…What do Pa Ingalls and Saint Joseph have in Common?

This past year, our family of 6 started doing what I can only suppose would be a childlike version of Ignatian contemplation with our kids before bed. We don’t have a better term for it other than a “story prayer.” But the kids LOVE it, especially our 3 year old who would much rather jump on the bed than pray.

It’s kind of like a guided meditation, I suppose. But in it, they always meet the Child Jesus. I tell them that Jesus can be whatever age they want him to be in this story, but more often than not, they prefer Jesus to be their very own age (3, 5, 7, etc).

In these stories, they might be playing by a creek with Jesus, wondering through the woods looking for cool nature items… sometimes getting themselves into accidental scrapes where the kids might want to lie or pass blame, but in which the Child Jesus gently models virtue.