Monday, January 25, 2010

She Sees Beauty



She sees beauty in this world and in the worlds her mind begets.
Her eyes spot gems among a driveway of gravel. To her, holey leaves are amazing…not damaged. If you ask her why, she’ll say it is because those are the leaves that shared with the caterpillars.  When it rains, she pulls on her pink and leopard printed boots and dances through puddles.  Should a ray of sun cut into a cloud, she searches for a rainbow… if we find one, she is the first to proclaim it beautiful.

She sees beauty in people.
Everyone she encounters is, in her eyes, a new friend.  Age, gender, cultural differences and physical maladies are not discriminating factors she employs. Instead, she chooses her friends based on their smile…or sometimes their lack of a smile.  She climbs up her great-grandfather’s lap and envelops his neck in her arms.  His wheelchair does not bother her…nor does his paralysis, or lack of speech.  She sees him with the eyes of her heart. She sees that he is beautiful.

She sees beauty in her flawed mother.
I love her. I have always loved her. I wanted her before she was made and I wanted her even more when I watched the image of her peanut-sized body fluttering on a monitor.  When her first cries rang louder than my tired moans and her pink and perfect body squirmed in my arms, I felt as though my heart would expire from sheer exhilaration. I love her…yet sometimes I fail her. But when I ask for her forgiveness, she never hesitates. Instead, she hugs me. She says that she has the best mommy in the world. She tells me I am beautiful.

She sees beauty in giving.
Money slipped out from the birthday cards that arrived in the mail. With excitement she gasped, “This is so wonderful! I can use this money to help others…maybe I can buy food or toys for children who do not have anything.”  Sometimes, the simplest gifts from others bring her the most joy…a drawing from a friend, a paper star from her teacher, and a “moon rock” she found with a classmate are among her most cherished possessions because they are from people she loves. They mean something. She thinks they are beautiful.

She sees beauty, because she is beautiful.

Today marks the beginning of the sixth year that I am invited to revel in her beauty. Happy Birthday to my daughter…the owner of a most beautiful soul.



"How beautiful on the mountains 
       are the feet of those who bring good news, 
       who proclaim peace, 
       who bring good tidings, 
       who proclaim salvation, 
       who say to Zion, 
       'Your God reigns!'"
-Isaiah 52:7 NIV-





25 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a treasure she is.

Happy, Happy Birthday to the beautiful Girl who sees beauty in everything.

-Christy

Lora said...

what a beautiful little girl--and a beautiful tribute to her :) Happy Birthday sweet girl!

giselle said...

What a beautiful tribute to both of you. God did give her that loving soul but you have nurtured that soul.

Happy Birthday !

Unknown said...

Your beauty shares a birthday with my son! Hope you all have a wonderful day celebrating!

Andrea said...

Happy Birthday, Sweetie Pie! May GOD continue to grow you into the young lady HE created you to be!!

Blessings, andrea

Becca~CapturingSimpleJoys said...

What a beautiful girl and such a sweet tribute to her! Happy birthday honey!

This reminds me why we are told to be as little children!

M.O.T.B said...

She sounds like an incredible child...good work mommy!

Ronel said...

What a sweet and lovely post!! This makes my heart smile :0)!! I pray one day I will know what it is like to have a little girl!!

Kelly said...

so, well, so beautiful!

Rev. Peter Doodes said...

One of the wonderful talents that children have is to allow us to see the world around us anew.

Matthew 18:2-3 And calling to Him a child, Hhe put him in the midst of them and said, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven".

In the words of Walt Streightiff "There are no seven wonders of the world in the eyes of a child. There are seven million".

Sonya said...

Remembering her 2nd birthday! Sweet memories of a very sweet girl!

Unknown said...

What a beautiful tribute to your daughter! She does indeed have a beautiful mother!

elizabeth embracing life said...

Adorable and Precious!!!

Karen Hossink said...

Angela, this is, well, beautiful!
Really.
Hope her birthday was great!

Susan said...

what a fabulous tribute to your little girl. Happy birthday to her and thank YOU for sharing her in such beautiful words!

:-) Susan

Lisa Smith said...

I am crying and asking God for childlike faith.

One of my favorite verses. Very fitting for a beautiful soul. I bet she would find One beautiful who had no earthly majesty.

LaVon Baker said...

How wonderfully you have affirmed your beautiful daughter. You need to print this or scrapbook it and frame it for her. She will love you the most for it when she is older and has children of her own.

I came over to your blog from In Courage to comment about my favorite word. The word that I have not always lived by, but now I am ever mindful of it and encourage others in it.... GRACE. Now I try to see trials and testing as a means to test my Grace Quotient.

Your daughter is blessed to have you as her mother.

Unknown said...

Happy Birthday to your lovely little daughter. I just discovered your blog through the In Courage network, and it's a true gem, beautifully written and inspiring. I am a follower.

http://thepursuitofmommyness.com/

stacey said...

Happy Belated Birthday to your sweet little girl!!!

Just stopping in to say Hi! I know I am not the best commenter but I miss reading your posts, I hope all is well with you & you family:)

Michele Williams said...

Happy Birthday to a beautiful young lady... Such a sweetie..

blessings...

Unknown said...

What a wonderful way to stary my day. This was a wonderful tribute to a beautiful little girl.

Bomi said...

Thanks for sharing this lovely post about your beautiful daughter. She is so pretty and this post is so heartwarming. Happy Birthday, little lady:)!

~Bomi

achristianmommy said...

This was such a touching post! My daughter, just like your daughter, sees beauty in so many things. I feel so blessed that today, even though I wore grungy clothes, no makeup, and had crazy hair, my daughter said, "Mommy, you are pretty." Isn't it amazing how God uses children to show us His perspective of the beauty that surrounds us?

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your insights, and your method of sharing them. I enjoy your blog!! Blessings, debgraafsma.wordpress.com

Jewelielyn said...

this was a lovely post. i am so glad i found it today.

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