Sunday, May 8, 2011

A Song Worth Singing

The other day when I was out and about, I saw a mini-van with a woman driving and what appeared to be her two young daughters in the backseat.  It looked like they were all singing.  And it brought memories flooding back to me.

When my two girls were young, it seemed we spent a lot of time in the car.  Living in a small town 10 miles away from our church, shopping, many of our activities, and a lot of our friends - it’s just what we did.  That was back in the days when we all had bigger hair, my eyeglasses were as large as my face, and I had a snazzy wardrobe that included leggings and razzle-dazzle tops.  We eventually moved to town, but we were still on the go a lot.  Sometimes they fought over who got to sit up front.  Make no mistake - it was not to be close to me.  It was for control of the radio! (I’m not sure I ever heard an entire song for a couple of years there in the early 90’s!)  And then came the age of the Walkman.  From then on, they were usually both in the back of my mini-van, each with their own knock-off version of a Walkman, both singing their guts out to a different song!

When I think back to those days of raising my girls, the hindsight thing kicks in and I wish I had done some things differently.  However, history is what it is and we can’t go back.  I know I made mistakes, and for that, I humbly apologize to my children.  But I was just doing the best I knew how at the time.  We had our share of mother / daughter disagreements, frustration, and trials.  But I think we also had some good times and fun along the way.  I know I have a lot of wonderful memories of their childhood.  I hope they do, too!  

But maybe I did some things right raising them.   In their metamorphosis from childhood years into the adult world, they traveled totally different paths.  And they have both emerged into amazing young women.  They are intelligent, articulate, driven, funny, compassionate, and fiercely loyal to those they love.  And they are both beautiful.  

They still march to different drummers and sing their own song.  And it puts a song in my heart to think about them.  My song is one of praise to God for allowing me the privilege of being their Mom!

So to you – Jenny and Katie – I just want to tell you how very special and precious you both are to me.  You are treasures beyond worth and I love you so much!

“Children are a gift from the Lord.”  Psalm 127:3 (NLT)