Squeeze the DayI had one of those moments this morning. It was the sort of moment that made me stop and smell a rose. Well, not so much a rose as my daughter, but I did it just the same, both figuratively and literally.
I was pulling into our garage, which inevitably means facing my neighbor’s house. 5 years ago, they lost their daughter. She was 16. I know this because I’d just given birth to my son. Every day for the last 5 years, I’ve thought about it, at least briefly. And in that brief thought, I think about what life might be like for them (the parents, the sister) and offer a small prayer for them.
This morning, as I grabbed a particularly doting daughter out of her car seat, I felt that twinge again. They don’t get to have any more of these. They can’t squeeze in any more of her toddler hugs, they can’t carry that fake-sleeping girl into her bed, and they won’t ever hold her children. So, in vain, I hug my daughter a little harder. I breathe in the scent of the strawberry yogurt that’s dried on her cheeks. I cover her fleshy cheeks in kisses, and milk the most out of the moment before setting her down to play.
My unusual blessing is that I get to enjoy this moment twice. I head back for the minivan and pull out a second, eager toddler, and enjoy her physically identical, but very different self, with the same squeezes and sniffs and kisses. But they’re just for her.
How did I get so lucky? I wonder. I think that maybe God knew my heart would ache twice when I looked across the driveway. Maybe God knew I needed double the squeezes to inspire double the prayers that cross from my heart to theirs.
Never pass up a chance to squeeze the day, especially if it involves your children.
Squeezes,
5 comments:
Beautiful Lynn! I love your writing!
What a nice sentiment. I squeeze my grandchildren every chance I get.
PS - love your profile - made me chuckle at the "posterior" comment
You put that together beautifully, Lynn. Love it! Thank you so much for sharing.
Ohmygoodness. Tears just well up, and my heart pounds. I love my nieces and nephews and can never ever give them enough hugs or kisses. They just mean so much to me, and maybe it's my way of saying thank you God for letting my sisters have wonderul children, but thanks God for loving us all!!! Thank you Lynn for your inspiration.
Post a Comment