Lessons from A Little Princess

One of my favorite books as a child was A Little Princess by Francis Hodgson Burnett. The story is about Sarah Crewe a little girl living at a boarding school who acts like a princess not matter what her circumstances. At first she lives like a princess; she is the richest girl at the school. However, when her father loses all of his money and dies the jealous Miss Minchin banishes her to the attic and makes her work as a servant at the school. Even in poverty, working long, hard day and barely getting enough food to survive, Sarah still acts like and thinks of herself as a princess. She never lets go of this vision, and it helps her survive. She makes herself a princess by her belief and her action. As a child of God, adopted in Jesus family, we are all princes and princesses. No matter where we come from or how much money we have, we are children of the king. What does it mean to be a princess? A princess knows that she is special. She isn’t willing to settle for less than what she deserves, she isn’t willing to kiss all the frogs she can find in hopes of making a prince. A princess knows she has value and requires the world to respect that value. She won’t sell herself short. A princess has responsibility. She takes responsibility for her own actions and she takes responsibility for those around her. She knows that she has a duty to share what she has, to take care of others and serve them before herself. A princess must be gracious, forgiving others and giving grace wherever she goes. I wish that I could have Sarah Crewe’s attitude. Every little girl wishes she was a princess, but few are capable of believing it despite all odds. Yet every woman is a princess, no matter who she is, no matter where she lives, not matter what she does, she is a princess. Every man is a prince. We are all sons and daughters of the king, it’s just that sometimes we forget.