Boy, did I get the wool pulled over my eyes this birthday!! I had no idea anyone knew it was my day... well, everyone knew and no one spilled, even all the kids! That just proves to me that they can listen and follow directions... just not to me. :/
So, we begin each day with mass, and in the opening prayer of this particular mass, Fr. Isadore said a beautiful prayer for me, and that was how I found out the jig was up. After mass was a great breakfast, followed by time with the kids including choir practice and games. Balloons and signs wishing a Happy Birthday were everywhere, and then the real party began. I was taken into a room, dressed in a beautiful purple and gold dress (my gift from Sister Stan) which had a matching scarf headdress, and then the dancing commenced! Of course, everyone wanted to dance with the birthday girl. (I was bribing them with caramels!) Lunch and dinner were delicious and I even got a birthday cake!! It was a really fun day, and I must admit, it made me feel quite special. It was a birthday for the record books, one I will never forget!!
But the best present I received was from Baby Ella... not a smile yet, but in the morning, laying on my bed, she looked right at me and began cooing and singing, playing with my hands, touching my face and allowing me to gently massage her. It was a beautiful time where she opened up to me and I could see the beginnings of a smile in her eyes. What a precious gift!
Sometimes when I sit down to write my blog, I have the time to write, edit and publish it all in one sitting. Usually the words just flow from the Spirit into my meager mind and onto the keyboard. But there are times that we are so busy and I get interrupted or fall asleep midsentence and it takes a few days to write. This is one of those times where I have been writing this for 2 days on and off as I have had time. Well, I just had a beautiful moment with Ella and some of the girls. God's Gift, who is about 5 years old was crying in the courtyard, so took Ella to find what was the matter. She was indecipherable, so I think it must not have been that important. So we sat on the steps and looked at Ella in my arms who was getting very tired. Along came Sarah (8), Agatha (6) and Rebecca (17). I sang them some lullabies that I remembered, Hush Little Baby and the one about the cradle dropping (why that is a lullaby, I have no idea). The girls sang Lord I Lift Your Name Up High, and then I told them about putting my niece Natalie to sleep singing I Will by the Beatles, and I sang that one. "Love you forever and forever...love you with all my heart...love you whenever we're together...love you when we're apart." It was so sweet. At the end of the lullaby fest, Ella was indeed asleep and all the girls were so peaceful, it was just lovely!
I think the key to being somewhere where their seems to be no end to the harshness and heartache, where the craziest things happen in a split second and where nothing is familiar to me is to recognize and treasure the sweet little moments that occur throughout the day and take the time to appreciate them. They probably happen more often than I realize. Thank you, God for that moment, and for giving me the wisdom to acknowledge it for what it was and tuck it securely in my heart. xo
