Last night after returning from a very long weekend away, I sat down with my iPad which had sat untouched for the previous four days. I gasped in horror when I saw I had over one hundred new emails waiting for me. I didn’t have that much life in me to tackle that much stuff so I decided to “go light” and check out Facebook instead.
The first thing I saw when I opened my “news feed” was this photo of my daughter Maggie. She’d mentioned that she’d sat for a photographer friend of hers when I spoke to her last week but I could never have imagined a photo as beautiful as this. Not only did the eye behind the camera capture a good likeness of Maggie’s outward appearance, but he also somehow managed to bring into view the beauty of her soul, which I see radiating on her face.
Sixteen years ago today, Maggie did something extraordinary. She gave birth to a perfect baby boy and then willingly and lovingly placed him in the arms of the couple who were to be his parents. She didn’t have to give him to them for that matter, she didn’t even have to carry him to term. If she’d been inclined to, she had alternatives.
But once she had recovered from the initial shock of her situation and had gathered the courage to come to Dave and me, she knew that in order to be true to herself, there was only one choice to make; to find a loving home for her child. And that she did.
In countless ways the birth of Maggie’s first baby boy was the beginning of a bounty of miracles for us. By living out her faith and trusting in God’s promise, a family was created; mother, father and baby. I know it wasn’t easy for her to say goodbye to him they day we left the hospital, it’s a lonely feeling to find yourself without the life that’s been growing inside you. But God kept us all so close though those early days that we all began to blend into one family, with our baby boy, Seth at its center.
Sixteen years later, Seth is no longer a baby but in so many ways his birth has been a defining moment for Maggie as well as the rest of our family. If nothing else, Seth is the tangible proof that God is with us at all times, faithful to the promise that we are loved, even when we stray from the path.
A very wise friend of mine, Fr. Dan Bain has a saying that he imparts practically every time he speaks to a group. He says,”There is NOTHING you can do to make God stop LOVING you. And that is true for me too.” Each time I look at Maggie’s radiant face in this photo, I know that is true. God does not expect us to be perfect, only faithful. And when you are faithful to God’s promise, miracles happen.
Monica, not only is the photo of Maggie exquisite but your post is as well. I have tears in my eyes just reading your eloquent prose of love for your daughter and the miracles of God. Thanks for sharing.