First Born

It’s a girl! 6 lbs 4 ounces! And man, has she got a voice!

Then they placed her in my arms and my heart overflowed. I looked into the eyes of her father and told him, “We’ve been blessed.”

A few days later, my doctor told me to take her home and just live. His advise was “Don’t adjust your life around the baby, as the baby will adjust to your life.”

And she sure did. I remember how she could sleep through me vacuuming, even under her crib. She loved the animals and the plants, just like her dad. She loved baking and crafting just like her mom. She loved the outdoors, even as a newborn. Oh how she hated it when we’d go outside and cover her up to protect her from our Alberta winters. She’d only stop crying when her nose was out from under the blankets and soon it would be a pink nose.

She’s still like that! Tenacious about dong things her way. But loving to the very core of her being.

Oh she’s had her struggles and challenges. But she was God’s gift to me. A gift he actually gave me twice. And I thank Him for it. You see, we just about lost her when she was 18. In fact, the police had told us she was gone. The van was demolished and there was not much left of the passenger side where she’d been sitting. But then the nurse told us they had revived her and she was in a coma. We now know that was when God was deciding if He needed her more than we did. Days later she awoke and her journey to recovery began.

Today she turns 30! Yet she’s always willing to help her family. I know she struggled sometimes wonders why God sent her back. But I know why.

Today, I look into the eyes of my first-born and tell her she’s blessed my life in uncountable ways and that I couldn’t imagine these past 12 years without her.

Today, I rejoice that she’s my daughter.

Father, thank you for Rebecca. I know you have a special plan for her life, just as You did for mine. Open her heart to find Your purpose for her.