Cameo

Every Mother's Day I get this overwhelming surge of love and gratitude.  The greatest gift on Mother's day is that I get to be the mother of my children.

20 years ago today, I became a mother for the very first time.  It was a dream come true.  5 pounds (and 14 ounces) of precious, wrapped in flesh and placed in my arms.  And every moment since then has continued to fill my heart .... 

Cameo was the most precocious little girl.  Full of life and energy and absolutely delightful.  She started talking early and before the age of 2 we would have actual conversations.  She loved letters and words and books.   We could spend hours reading.  She had a terrific imagination and an inquisitive mind, wanting to know EVERYTHING about everything.  Never afraid to catch a frog or search for cray fish in the creek.

She loved school and adored her teachers.  

She hasn't really changed all that much.  She's in college now, frustrated that she can't take all the classes that she wants to take, cuz she wants to KNOW everything.  She texted me the other day all excited because she realized that if she is a writer she can learn about whatever she wants to. I'm not surprised she wants to write.

I cannot be more proud of the young woman she has become.  

She really is rather amazing.  When I say she wants to know everything about whatever subject she's interested in; that can be anything from watching EVERY movie Johnny Depp ever made to reading about quantum physics to in-depth research on autism.

Knowledge is not her only passion.  She has a passion for children.  But not regular children.  She is passionate about the hurting children... foster children, disabled children, children who struggle with ADHD or autism; children who are misunderstood.  She has the wonderful quality of seeing beyond behaviour and into the misunderstood and hurting soul. 

I could really go on and on about her.  She loves music, from Mozart to One Direction to silly children's songs.  She's crafty and creative, decorating her room with the back end of elephants and making sure she has a Christmas wreath with ornaments.  She's not ashamed to embrace her "inner child" and delights in Dr. Suess and Veggie Tales.  She loves anything elephant, and adopted the bumblebee as her "God thing" because it is physically impossible for a bee the fly... and yet it does.  She is one of the most loyal people I know.  She loves her brother.  And she tackles life full force.

So on your birthday, one of the best days of my life.  My darling Cameo, I celebrate YOU.  You are the apple of my eye, the delight of my heart; a joy and more precious to me than my own life.  You have taught me about loyalty, about looking beyond, about the love of learning, about compassion and understanding the misunderstood.  I am beyond blessed that God, in His merciful compassion and as a loving act, allowed me to be your mom.  I LOVE YOU PICKLE!   

mom