From darkness into light

"The wonderful little girl, conceived in love, nurtured (sometimes uncomfortably) by her mother for nine months, was now a person. A little girl who will be fiercely loved by her family, and sometimes (as she grows up) only tolerated by her brother when she torments him."

I know - this sounds very biblical. And it is to a degree. It has to do with this week. The week started out with my wife and I heading south, hoping against hope we would have darkness. That is, darkness at just the right time, in just the right place. That would be the long awaited total eclipse of 2017.

Even though Monday started out stormy (wrong kind of darkness), as luck would have it, once we reached central Nebraska, the light was with us. Sunlight that is. And we needed the sunlight in order to have the darkness which was due to arrive a bit after one pm. As if it was divinely orchestrated, darkness fell over our patch of the Earth. For slightly over two full minutes, the darkness we hoped for, came.

Just as sunlight replaced the darkness once the eclipse was over, new light for our family was just over the horizon. We needed to get back home in time to see the birth of our first granddaughter. All the way home we talked about the expected birth. We reminisced about the birth of our grandson. How new light came into our lives. Into the world. Soon, there would be another ray of new light. Another blank canvas, another blank sheet of paper, just waiting for her to make her mark.

Yesterday, early in the afternoon, Cecelia Grace made her presence known. Did she come into this world all scrunched up like her brother did? I have no clue. We were at home watching her brother so her father could be at the hospital for the big event. I do know this however - when we went to the hospital to see Cecelia Grace for the first time, I was once again awestruck by the power of the Almighty. This wonderful little girl, conceived in love, nurtured (sometimes uncomfortably) by her mother for nine months, was now a person. A little girl who will be fiercely loved by her family, and sometimes (as she grows up) only tolerated by her brother when she torments him. 

Cecelia Grace comes into a world ripe with uncertainty. A world full of danger and consequences. But then again, so did her brother. And her mother and her aunt. It is up to us, the grandparents and the parents, to ensure this world is not as grim as appears. That this world is full of hope and promise. But this will only be done one way. Trust in the Lord. Trust that He made this world for us to not only survive in, but to thrive in. If we put our hope, our faith, into that promise, nothing in this world needs to be feared.

Welcome little girl. One minor word of warning. I do have a reputation of being a "play daddy" and a teaser of little girls. Just ask your mommy or your aunt. I hope I have matured just a bit from when I was a daddy. But just in case I have not, Mr. Tickle Hand is still hanging around. Love you baby - love you lots.