Jealousy

I don't want to throw Emma under the bus, but we were dealing with something most moms of girls can probably identify with: jealousy. Allison's sick and stayed home from school today. I had no choice but to bring her with me to the mall. For one hour. Emma reacted pretty typically for someone who had to learn at school all day while her sister went to the mall. (for an hour, but still...) Well, while

we were dealing with attitude, I said something I don't think I could come up with on my own. I think it was the Lord. I told her "Jealous girls are not happy girls. And Jealous women are not happy women. You can't be both happy and jealous at the same time. You have to choose." What struck me last year when I taught Emma's Sunday School class was how often in the Old Testament stories of siblings, jealousy was the root of all manner of sin. All the way back to Cain and Abel. Jealousy is a snare, for sure, and of course not just in sibling relationships. But I've never really thought of it as a choice, and moreover, a choice between happiness (which often means being happy for someone else) or jealousy. My last point: My kids teach me WAY more than I teach them.