Brightly

My life is so full right now. We are getting ready for our big conference coming up soon at work and I have been pulling together the silent auction. I am in the process of stealing the neighbor's cat, because I love her more, so there. Brother has play rehearsals and Jelly Bean is staying up half the night. We have a bonfire to go to on Saturday and I need to get my Christmas Tree and Thanksgiving Turkey from my mom. We have a schedule to go caroling with the drama group and are going to get the estimate to remodel Our House early next week.

Look how incredibly blessed we are. Look at it. Can you even see it because it shines so brightly?

A little 4 year old boy died last night of childhood leukemia. I only met him once at a Christmas party years ago when he was just a slug-bug baby in a sleeper with a gummy grin. I have been boo hooing all day at my desk because, while I know that I can never know what his mom and dad are going through, I *feel* it. This. All of our very worst fears. Everything we do is to prevent something like this happening to us. To our kids. I am inexplicably sad for them. For the mama and the daddy and the big brother. For his auntie who is about to marry my cousin. For my cousin and the people on the email listing and Facebook. For everyone who is sitting there crying at their desks, just like me.

I know it is so so cheesy. I know it is a cliche, but this gave me some perspective: Life is not about getting through the storms; it is about learning to dance in the rain.

So I am going to go home and kiss the husband who drives me crazy. I am going to go hug Brother who misbehaves in school and hug that Jelly Bean who misbehaves all the time. I am going to look at my dirty house with thankfulness in my heart. And I am going to send out a dove-winged prayer for Kyle, where ever he may be.

"Goodnight, Sweet Prince...

And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest."