Tuesday With Teri

         My little girl is graduating college this weekend!

           When she was born she seemed so fragile.  I remember holding her delicate hand, and thanking God for the gift He gave us in the form of this precious, blue-eyed, blonde haired baby girl.  I can easily recall the image of her tucked in the crook of my arm as we sat in our rocking chair.  I spent countless hours rocking her and just staring at her tiny features.

          Sometimes, when no one else was around, I would find myself crying at the enormity of it all, the joy of it all…I would later come to realize that being a mom brings with it a lot of tears.  Tears of frustration, fear, joy and laughter would flow freely over the next 23 years of our lives.

Every night as I held her, I would pray for her.  I would pray for her future, her todays and tomorrows and I would try to imagine all her life would hold.  Though the time eventually came when I no longer held her in my arms, I always held her in my heart and prayed. I prayed for her future, her todays and tomorrows.

She toddled through her early years, scampered through her grade school years, ran through her middle school years, went kicking and screaming through her high school years, and has flown through her college years. 

I am beyond proud of all she has accomplished.  I love the young lady she has become.  I won’t ask where the time went, I know.  I won’t ask how this happened, I know that too.  I may be tempted to think our time with her has been a blur, as if it was only yesterday that we brought her home from the hospital all bundled in pink, but I know better.  I have every day of our time together etched firmly in my heart.  I treasure every sweet memory, funny story, maddening battle and memorable moment we share, always have…always will.

-When she was little I used to sing her songs I would make up.  She especially liked the ones about a princess.  There was one song though, that would become my favorite.  It was not about a princess, it was for my princess.  As she grew older, I would whisper it quietly at her bedside while she slept.  When she was in her teens, I would stand outside her door most evenings and quietly sing it under my breath.  Over the years I have often sung it as my prayer for her.  This morning I found myself humming the tune and quietly singing this song as I went for a walk.  As the day of celebrating another milestone in her life approaches, I find it is just as meaningful now as when I first held her in my arms.

Lord please hear this simple prayer, for my girl with golden hair

Give her rest when she’s weary, give her strength when she is weak

And protect her in this world, from satan’s deceit.

Help her to know your infinite mercy and to feel your boundless love

Lord, watch my child from above, Lord watch my child from above

Lord please hear this simple prayer, for my girl with golden hair…

I love you Ashley Miller

1 Corinthians 1:3-16