Friday afternoon our newest grandchild, Geoffrey William, checked out of the hospital after five days and was able to go home with his family.

Needless to say, there is much joy and excitement in the Campbell house.

Fortunately, we have some good photos, but even the best of them cannot begin to tell the story of how much life can radiate out from such a tiny human.

His siblings are already pulsating with light. Add one more and the house in South Miami may well go supernova!

This is the atmosphere of enthusiastic discovery, unbounded love, and a vibrant engagement of life G.W. is going to be raised in! Consequently, one of my most consistent prayers for all our grandchildren is that they never lose their vibrancy, their core energy, and their deep connection with and passion for life – the same passion that motivated God to create them in the first place!

One of my favorite educational philosophers – the (sadly) late Sir Ken Robinson – said that most children are born with “gifted” levels of creativity and enthusiasm for learning. Longitudinal testing tends to demonstrate a consistent decline between the ages of five and 18 that can probably be attributed to the way society implements formal education.

I would add that responsibility for such decline also lays at the feet of many parents (and indeed the rest of us), because parents are the leaders in the home and it is critical that they/we model the kind of engagement with life and learning we all want our children to continue.

Geoffrey William is God’s latest gift of light and promise to this world.

May we receive the gift.

And may we all rekindle the light and the love and the passion for life we were not only born with, but born for – DEREK

Do good, be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share, thus storing up for [your]selves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that [you] may take hold of the life that really is life. – 1 Timothy 6:18