WHERE HAVE ALL "MY" CHILDREN GONE?(long time passing)

It happens about every three years... without fail- someone.. or some THING comes and takes them away. My wife and I have to say good-bye.. and it's tough- sometimes we have them for 3 or 4 years... and then they vanish... Maria and I are starting to get used to this strange thing that happens... ( well, not REALLY)... you see one day, we are hearing wonderful stories about dolls, jet-planes, boat rides, birthday parties, puppies, and kittens. The "boo-boos" on elbows and shins are proudly displayed as red badges of courage -" Mr. Callaway, I went ALL the way to the top of the monkey bars- and I was'nt even afraid!" They tell me about their friends at school and in the neighborhood- they tell me what's going on at home( yep... they tell me everything- so watch out!)We laugh together ..and we get "watery eyes" together..... and THEN??? they disappear... they go away never to return... I think of them often..- There is one little girl in particular that I could always count on for a laugh and a tear- One day, we were doing the lesson on King David, and when you're teaching 6 and 7 year olds, you have to be creative when you are explaining the sin of adultery... so I said ," King David walks around on his roof after sleeping all day, and he sees a beautiful woman down below at her house . He thinks to himself," She's beautiful, I think I will take her from her husband and make her my wife.." before I could finish my pasteurized, G-rated, version of David's fornication, that little girl raised her hand and said, " That was'nt the ONLY thing he was thinking Mr. Callaway!!!-He was also thinking" OH BABY!!!"... needless to say , I turned my face away so that she could'nt see me smile- I held my laughter back, and continued with the lesson.. besides- she was right.. David PROBABLY was thinking OH BABY!!! The Honesty and transparency of my little friends brings laughter. but this little girl also brought me tears when she told me one day, " Mr. Callaway, It's hard when you are little and your parents don't want to stay together"...Watery eyes.. mine and hers... This little friend of mine went away with the others... sometimes in the hallways of the church I see older children that look like them.. they are taller, their voices sound different, the clothes they wear are different from what my little friends wore... and besides.. they CA'nt be my little friends.. my young friends always shouted to me across the hall, " hey Mr. Callaway", they'd wave and smile.. they'd run up to me and hug me... these boys and girls that I see now across the hall??? well..They hardly ever talk to me,,,they are busy talking to their friends... they look almost grown up... I bet they NEVER talk about puppies and kittens and jet planes.. uh oh.... watery eyes...