How is it possible

My precious daughter,

How is it possible that today you turn 17? Just yesterday, you were this tiny baby they placed in my arms at the hospital. You looked up at me and just stared, with those beautiful eyes of yours. At that time they weren't the gorgeous blue they are today, but I still couldn't take my eyes off of you.

As you began to grow and learned to walk and talk, we were all amazed by your every accomplishment. Your Pops must have said, "She is brilliant!" a million times before you were two years old.

I know that there have been perks to having a young - though not cool - mom as you have grown up. Actually, I have grown up with you. I don't think I'm finished yet, either.
Neither are you, by the way.

I also believe that there have been disadvantages to me being so young when I had you. There were so many things I didn't know, and I wish I understood from the beginning that you are so much more important than anything else (besides God) in this life.

You are way more important than how clean my house is or how many e-mails are in my inbox or whoever I am talking to on the other line.

You are more important than the dreams that I have for myself or what fun thing I get to do today. As I am realizing now, you are only here in this house with me for a very short time. Seventeen years seemed like an eternity when you were a tiny baby.

Now it seems like a mere moment.

As you are praying and wondering about where the Lord will lead you next year when you graduate, your dad and I are, too. I know God has wonderful plans for you, and if you will continue to seek Him daily, He will guide you every step of the way.

At the risk of sounding like Carrie Underwood, please don't forget to remember me. Don't ever think you can't call, even if you are a big grown-up college student. Don't ever think that I am doing something so important that you would be interrupting me if you picked up the phone.

Don't ever forget that you will always have a warm bed and a hot cooked meal here. Don't ever think that I wouldn't cherish every moment of cooking for you or even washing your dirty clothes. When I know you're coming home, I'll be counting down the minutes. I promise not to follow you to college, though I can't promise that I won't visit.

You always like to tease me about this song, because it makes me cry. I love it because it's a perfect picture of how our family started out. Not the traditional way, but God was with us just the same. So I'm posting the link here today, as a gift to you.

And yes, just like always, it still makes me cry.

Happy birthday, sweetheart. You will always be my favorite girl.

I love you,
Mom

Originally posted January 2009 @ Mom in Transition