On This Day

The above picture is a picture of my Mom, my brother
and my sister who is 48 years old today. We were getting ready
for church. My Dad had just got a Polaroid Camera and took
our picture. I am the one in the back.
I have so few pictures of my Mom and us that I have hung onto
this one for years.
I think as I look at this picture, from 1969 that by September,
my Mom would be living in heaven. But this post is not about
that.
Today my sister is 48 years old. When my Dad told me that I could
pick out a name for the baby if it was a girl, I had a book series called
The Best In Children's Books and on the page with precious stones,
there was a picture of a Ruby. I loved rubies because they were red
and at the time I just loved red. I thought it was the most beautiful
name I could think of so I said, " Dad lets name her Ruby!" He very
carefully told me he thought this other name would be better.
Now I was already feeling a bit disgruntled because when they brought
my brother home, I was expecting someone to play with, instead they
brought home this baby who so messed up my life. He cried all of the time,
he never slept, when he got big enough to stand he jumped in his crib
until he finally broke it. He ate the dirt in my Mom's plants, he ate
cigarette butts. He was just no fun at all.

So I was better prepared this time, at least by now I was three.
So on a morning just like today, I was at my Grandma's house
waiting watching for the car. The bassinet was all set up in the
living room and I was so glad to see my Mom and the baby
that I jumped up and down all the way as they walked
in the house.

My Mom then very carefully, laid the most beautiful baby
in whole world in the bed. She had these little curly black
ringlets all over her head. She had the prettiest peaches
and cream skin and her lovely black eyelashes were so long
they were bushing her face. I put my hand in and when she took
my finger and held on I was enraptured.

She was always the kind of perfect baby that people would walk
by and exclaim how pretty she was and all of my Mom's friends
always wanted to take her home with them. She talked so cute,
and had such a vocabulary that she was a riot to talk to and everyone
just wanted to listen to her.

She learned to read by the time she was two and one of the odd
memories was that she would sit and play solitaire when she
was so little. She always loved her dolls and was such a good
little Mommy.

She moved back to Oklahoma to take care of our step-mother
and this will be her first birthday without our Mom. I hope that
she reads this and knows that on this day 48 years ago,
I received such a wonderful gift.
Happy Birthday! I hope you have a wonderful day.

Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, for His wonderful works to the children of men!

(Psalm. 107:6)