Baby Talk for Adults

Last week I took the journey down to Pelzer (ok, so it's a short journey that takes all of about 15 minutes---never correct me) to visit my friends Heather and Ryan and their almost two week old son. Let's get the real talk out of the way first, Baby James is mega cute, small, sweet and acted like a complete gentleman the whole time I was there. He is incredible. He is a little bundle of miracle joy love (and any other insanely magical happy words you can throw in there). So, I was thrilled to meet him, hold him, talk to him, and love on him. But I was also excited to have some baby talk with his parents. 

Ryan and Heather are two of the most gentle, loving people I ever met. They speak in love and truth. They speak delicately, but what they say has so much power. I really could make this whole entry about just them and their dynamics, character, and heart for the Lord. 

But...

I have a story/point here.

I was asking all the usual questions about parenting, labor, pregnancy, life with a baby...

And I asked Heather (and Ryan) what was something she/he learned about the Lord through the process of having Baby James. There was a moment of silence...and then Heather said one of the most beautiful things I've heard in a long time. 

She told me that when she was holding Baby James in her arms at the hospital she looked down at him and was overwhelmed with love for him, but also she was proud of him. She was genuinely proud of him and he hadn't yet done anything to earn it. She was proud of him because HE WAS HERS. That was her reason. And she said it reminded her that that's how the Lord views her. She doesn't have to do anything (no fancy circus tricks or life projects) or even try to earn the Lord's praise and love. He is just proud of her for being HIS. He is proud of all HIS children. 

I couldn't help but tear up a little. 

It wasn't laced with big words or fictitious elegance. It was just simple. It was and is TRUTH and that's what made it so incredibly beautiful. 

Baby James is an incredibly blessed little boy. Just like we are all blessed to have a Father who loves us...and is Proud of us...just because we are His.

Oz

So for some reason I thought I might need a project for the last year of my 20s. That project is a series of daily writings: poems, thoughts, and ramblings. One entry a day...all leading up to the big 3-0 at the end of 2014. I've been keeping all these thoughts in a journal. Most of them, not worth sharing.

Anyways, writer's block is bound to show up multiple days (or maybe all 365)...so today's poem was silly and well, probably a product of writer's block.

Jan 6, 2014
(inspired by the Wizard of Oz at the Peace Center)

We're not in Kansas anymore
More than tornadoes hide in the sky
Aunt Em and Uncle Henry got their own issues
And little Toto's about to die

The hay doesn't pay the bills or keep the power on
In fact, it barely fills the Scarecrow's body
Dorothy's out late drinking away her sorrows
And let's just say she gets a tad bit naughty

The Tin Man doesn't want a heart
He finds that emotions are quite the bother
And the Lion doesn't really need courage
Just like everyone else, He needs a father

The yellow brick road isn't paved in gold
The Wicked Witch of the West isn't all that bad
There's much of the story that's left untold
Because "Happily Ever After"makes a better fad