Soul Food Sunday: Angry Eyebrows

Welcome to Soul Food Sunday — because feeding our bodies is not enough.

To go along with last week’s Soul Food Sunday about having a “Yes Face,” I thought it would be fun to talk about something we used with our boys when they were little, and honestly, something I am still learning every day.

When our boys were young, VeggieTales had a spinoff called LarryBoy which, which was just Larry the Cucumber as a superhero. One episode that has stuck with me all these years was about the “The Angry Eyebrows.” It was a lesson on anger, and in true VeggieTales fashion, they made it memorable. When you got angry, these little eyebrow-like birds would come land on your face, and suddenly you were burning with anger.

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It was funny, clever, and just true enough to stick.

And really, eyebrows are quite a gift, aren’t they? They say so much without a single word. We raise them to show surprise or interest. They can show joy, concern, grief, concentration, worry, curiosity, and yes, anger. We’ve all seen that look on someone’s face before. Probably our moms or dads, if we’re being honest.

And if I’m being even more honest, sometimes I was that mom.

We used to tease the boys when they got upset and say, “Uh oh, the angry eyebrows have come to roost.” Sometimes it brought a smile. Sometimes it sent somebody running to the bathroom mirror. And sometimes, well, it made them even madder. Such is family life.

But one moment has stayed with me all these years.

One of our boys was doing something, and I honestly can’t even remember what it was. But I do remember this: my own face had clearly been overtaken by those angry eyebrow birds, and in the middle of it, he looked at me and said, “Mommy, you’ve got angry eyebrows.”

Now, I was still angry. But that little comment took the air right out of it.

It diffused me.

And instead of digging in deeper, we ended up talking about why Mommy was angry. I apologized for my outburst, and I asked for forgiveness.

That mattered to me then, and it still matters to me now.

I have always believed it’s important for our children to know that parents mess up too. Not just once in a blue moon, but more often than we’d like to admit. I certainly do. A lot. But messing up is not the end of the story. Asking for forgiveness matters. Humbling ourselves matters. Starting again matters.

I wanted our boys to know that it is okay to be human. It is okay to fail. But it is also important to make it right when we can.

The funny thing is, that VeggieTales episode had the same lesson tucked inside it.

There is a villain who delights in making people angry. Everywhere he goes, people lose their tempers and those “angry eyebrows” land on their faces. Even LarryBoy gets caught up in it for a moment. He’s furious. The eyebrows are there. But then he remembers what he’s supposed to do.

He lets go of his anger.

And just like that, the eyebrows flee.

When the people (veggies 😉) around him see that the hero isn’t holding on to his anger anymore, they begin letting go of theirs too.

Brilliant storytelling. For kids… and for grown-ups, like me.

It reminds me of a verse I come back to often:

“Go ahead and be angry… but don’t stay angry. Don’t go to bed angry.”
— Ephesians 4:26 (MSG)

Anger itself isn’t the problem. We all feel it. But holding onto it too long, letting it settle in and take up residence, that’s when it begins to shape us.

So the next time the “angry eyebrows” come to roost on your forehead, maybe you’ll think of this little story. Maybe you’ll soften your brow, loosen your jaw, put a small smile on your face, and give yourself a second to cool down.

“Because if you hold on to your anger, your anger will hold on to you.“

And that is a heavy thing to carry around on your face.

So the next time those angry eyebrows land on your forehead, remember…
you don’t have to let them build a nest.

Let them fly away.

Until next Sunday, take a little time to feed your soul too. 💚

P.S. Here’s a link to the full episode if you want to watch it!