Anticipation

I have been reading The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe to Olivia (and Joseph for that matter) for well over a year. For a long time she would just play in the room while I read. I would read only a page or two, and repeat a lot of pages that I was sure she missed. I know I am reading ahead of her developmental level, but I push that envelope on a regular basis just to see what the kids pick up on. I try not to push to the point of exasperation.

Part of my interest in making these stories a part of their early childhood is based on my not having read them until my adult years. So you can imagine my excitement now as Olivia is starting to show both comprehension and excitement. She asks about the beavers. She knows the witch is bad. She didn't know who Father Christmas was based on the description Lewis gives, but that's our fault for not doing the Santa Claus thing.

But Lewis foreshadows Aslan's arrival brilliantly, and Olivia went to bed tonight asking when she will get to see Aslan. She is very excited to see the great lion king, the hero of the story. What a great picture of excited anticipation, the kind that is building for each of us as believers to see the return of our great king, the hero of the story of history, Jesus!