Friday, February 25, 2011

beautiful beautiful beautiful boy

my friend's baby is dying. i say baby, he's really not a baby, he's six years old but in my eyes he has always stayed in a perpetual state of babiness. he looks to me to always be about 2. i think it's because of his smile that makes me think of a baby.

that innocent and pure face, a smile that says i have no cares in the world just the joy of the lord in my tiny grin. baby smiles are magical because they are pure, honest, and true. a baby smiles not because someone told a joke or something funny happened. they smile because they can and from day one this little baby has been a smiler.

he is the baby of five and one of the few children i can say actually is an incredible mix of his other four siblings and not just the physical traits either.

without saying a word you just know that this little boy has his oldest brother's gift of intelligence and genius, like his next to oldest brother he is very giving and funny. From his oldest sister you can see his sense of style in each curl on his head and the smile that starts in his eyes straight to your heart is from her. lastly that loving glow he has comes from his youngest sister and i think his laugh might be hers as well.

because of each of these unique and giving siblings it's easy to see that he is such a beautiful compilation of a little boy and why he is loved so very very much.

yesterday their second to oldest son came to visit. he is jackson's BEST friend and together they are such a hoot. i think they both had a great time and jackson was so sorry to see him go back home. last night before bedtime he came in our room and with that solemnity that only our jackie has he ask jere and i, "dad mom is my friend's little brother going to die?" we have side-stepped this question before but last night jere really felt led to be as honest as possible with him.

jere looked at him and hugged him and said, "hundreds of people are praying son, but no matter what is in each of our hearts or how bad we want something God has a plan for him that we just don't know. so yes he may die or God may heal him, it's God's choice."

he looked at us with such huge tears in his eyes and swallowed so hard trying to be "manly". "dad i don't want him to die." jere choking up now- "neither do we son."

neither do we.

Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint,
and to him who has no might he increases strength.
Even youths shall faint and be weary,
and young men shall fall exhausted;
but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.
—Isaiah 40:28-31

Summertime

Summertime
Beautiful batheing babes (and bubs)