As I tucked my babies into bed last night, I was tired. It had been a long, hot day. I needed a shower and my back was aching. Max was sick and in my arms much of the day and Lenny demanded my attention whenever Max didn't. It was exhausting. 

But last night as I tucked them in to bed, my heart was heavy for a different reason. Not because of a tiring day but because I was overwhelmed with sorrow. Sorrow for the children of Aleppo and sorrow for their parents. On the other side of the world, these parents just like us, are tired and overwhelmed but it's different. These parents are living in fear and desperation for the safety of their babies. They are so unfairly fighting for their lives.

Parenting is relentless and exhausting in the easiest of circumstances which is how much of the Western world live. But imagine looking after your little ones in a war-torn country or a city on the brink of destruction. These babies are hungry, they need their naps too. These babies might even be unwell. They like their bedtime stories, they might throw tantrums, they might be hot or cold, they might just want to play but they are living in a place where none of that is allowed to matter.

These parents are tired too. They have sleepless nights just like we do, but they wake up in fear. We wake up and start the day in houses with full fridges and a solid roof above our head.

As Max cried yesterday and I was beginning to lose my patience at the end of a long day, I stopped and started to cry, in some ways angry at myself for being so selfish. I thought of these parents whose children are suffering more than a sore throat or an upset tummy. They are living in very real terror and I feel powerless.

I stopped, I scooped Max up in my arms and I prayed with everything I had that God would grant mercy to these parents and their babies. That in the toughest of circumstances, there would be hope found and somehow they would feel peace, not only in their homes but in their city. I prayed that aid would get to these children - that they wouldn't be hungry, that they would get rest. I can't do much but I can give what I can to organisations like @preemptivelove.

We can feel powerless but we can also pray. We can tuck our babies in to bed, pull them close and hold them tight and as we do, we can think outwardly and pray. We can pray for these parents who love their babies and tuck them in just as we do.