When I was on vacation, I spent some time with friends in Oklahoma City. We visited the zoo together which was quite fun. I was so eager to see the red pandas – my favorite animal – but they were kind of far from the entrance. So, at first we marveled at all the strange and scary and beautiful animals, taking the time to find each one in its enclosure. But, after awhile, well…the lions were lying down with their backs to us, the giraffes were too far away to get a decent picture, and the only red panda I could see was high up, barely visible. Mutter, mutter, mutter.
It was hard not to get annoyed by the few disappointments, even in the presence of so many amazing animals. That is, until we got to the otters. Otters aren’t in my top five best animals list, but it’s hard not to love them. I have never once approached otters without seeing as much swimming and frolicking as I wanted to see. They are adorable and the bubbles that trail after them when they play only make them seem more whimsical. Still, within a few minutes, the otters were old news and I was waiting for my friends to be ready to go.
When, suddenly, we saw a little boy – maybe four years old – running up to the otter enclosure. His eyes were opened so wide. My friend Aaron showed him where the otters were and this little boy was just the picture of joy and glee. He turned around to show his Dad, he clapped his hands – he even made sure that the rest of us weren’t missing it. With that little boy there, the joy and beauty of God’s creation were undeniable. We saw the world through his eyes for such a brief time, but that changed everything.