Your hand of blessing is on my head

Touching someone's head is one of the most intimate, yet innocent, connections. Mother's touch their children's heads constantly, and I always thought it odd. Yet I find myself doing the same thing with greater frequency, mostly with the youngest children or with those I know fairly well. A touch on the head, a smoothing of the hair, conveys much more than "boy, your mom forgot about THAT cowlick today." It can be sign of blessing and affection, but it can also remind a wayward child that yes, you are still in the room. Smoothing back the hair from the eyes of a little girl can be comforting when she looks lost and alone. Patting a head can be a sign of approval, or a small nudge in the appropriate direction. Yet sometimes I wonder if the children even notice. Perhaps they are so used to it - it's just another adult playing with their hair. But as adults, we don't get to use our sense of touch very often anymore, at least not as platonic people-touching. When I touch a child's head, I feel more connected to them. This evening I discovered why. In Psalm 139, David says of God that His "hand of blessing is upon my head." Perhaps when I touch a child's head, I feel a little of what God feels everyday towards us. When I touch a child's head, I experience a tiny dewdrop of God's unconditional love for me. His hand of blessing is on my head, and He delights over me with singing. And when I pass that on through a hand of blessing on a child's head, I get a glimpse into the heart of God. Reaching, yet not demanding a response. His hand of blessing is on my head, and He loves me with an everlasting love.