Do you have a sign on your bedroom door? If you did, what would it say? I bet we are the only couple in the neighborhood with a sign on our bedroom door. It says “Club for Mom and Dad love Mark”.

Of course, every sign has a story. Our four children, then ages 5-8, were making “clubs” out of their bedrooms, complete with paper signs. “Mama, can you PLEASE help me with my sign?” Mark begged.

There were dishes to be done, lists to be made, laundry to be folded, and….I sighed. I sat down at the table, “Sure, what will your sign say?” We had these sticky letters Dad bought that were leftover so we used those. He told me he wanted to make a sign for mom and dad’s door. “You need your own club, Momma, it’s important.” He didn’t want us to feel left out.

This was a very generous thought from a young five year old who knows what it’s like to be left out of older kids’ play. I handed him letters and he stuck them down carefully, very pleased with his work. I handed him the tape and let him attach it to our door. That was over six months ago. The kids’ clubs are long forgotten in a long line of hide-and-seek , dress up, legos, and all kinds of other games. My sign remains taped to my door. Perhaps I am sentimental but I just can’t take it down.

It’s a visual reminder of so many things:

1. Teaching my kids generosity. To always remind them to put others’ needs ahead of their own and avoid selfishness.

2. That Mom and Dad do need time together, and time together without the children. We need our own “club” to have a great marriage and to be great parents.

3. That my kids need my help with things, and that I do need to take time to spend with them. I can set aside laundry and dishes for a few minutes of quality time.

As parents and spouses, we need reminders about what is important, and this sign has become a symbol, a reminder of what’s important. Do you have a sign on your bedroom door?