Irreplaceable

This morning my eight year old daughter asked me if there was a fire and I could only grab three things other than my children what would it be? I thought for a minute and I really could not think of anything other than my kids and my wife that I could not replace. I thought about my prized collection of baseball and football cards that include Emmitt Smith's and Barry Bonds' rookie cards. I thought about the pictures I have of family and friends, and the clothes and shoes that I have and love. All these things I really like, but are they irreplaceable? No.
I gave my daughter the answer that there is nothing other than you, your mom, and your brother that I couldn't replace. Therefore, I would only worry about the safety of my family and wouldn't even attempt to grab anything as long as she was safe. This really made me think about how precious life is and that material things come and go. I began to think about how much my life would be different without seeing her beautiful face every morning, or hearing her laugh when she's amused. The joys of parenthood are really what is irreplaceable. The high and the lows are all part of the job and make it so rewarding. I urge each of us to keep in mind what is truly irreplaceable and not place so much emphasis on things that can be replaced.