It’s mid-December and we’re once again right in the middle of the holiday season. This time of year always seems to fly by me in a blur as I’m sure it does for many. We all have things to do and places to be. I try to prepare for the season and usually I do a pretty good job, but I always feel like I could have done more. I think that as we get older, it gets more challenging to find distinctive gifts for the folks in our lives and to align our schedules in order to converge as a family.

My Favorite Holiday

Christmas is a favorite holiday of many. The festivity, the observation of our faith, and the closeness of family and friends help to lift our spirits. Others prefer Thanksgiving. They enjoy the food and sharing of family recipes, as well as the opportunity to give thanks and to be reminded of all our blessings. And then there’s the New Year crew. They welcome the chance to ring in the New Year with music, food, and drink. Some celebrate by being with loved ones and reflecting on all that has passed in the previous year, while looking forward to new opportunities in the coming year. My favorite holiday during this time of year falls right in the middle of all these days. It is the day my daughter was born.

Thirty years ago, my just-missed-Thanksgiving but just-before-Christmas baby was born. Right in the middle of all of our family revelry, we were given another reason to be joyous. Like so many of us, she was unplanned. I’ve always called her “the smartest mistake I ever made”. On that day my life changed and my plans became not my own, but hers. I have no regrets as Lindy has brought me joy every day since.

She was an easy baby. By the grace of God my child was born healthy and happy. The nurses in the delivery unit told me that she had the best temperament of all the babies in the nursery. One nurse also told me she was the cutest one. Of course I already knew that, and I didn’t even need to see any of the other babies to make that call.

A Joyful Childhood

From the time she born, my daughter has loved music. I played music and sang to her in the womb. Before and after her birth we listened to everything from lullabies to Patsy Cline, classical to Nirvana, and hip hop to show tunes. By the time she was 3 or 4 she was belting out songs with a voice that sounded as if it came from a grown woman. Over the years she has been awarded solos in school plays, sang at events, competed vocally against other students, and even been chosen to sing a lead part in a play that took her to France to perform. She plays flute and guitar and has dabbled in several other instruments (drums, trumpet, piano). Music has been a huge part of her life and I’ve always been so proud to watch her perform. Her voice touches me and gives me goose bumps every time I hear the melodies flow from her mouth.

She’s always loved to laugh. She can be silly and somewhat twisted. I like to think that comes from me, but it also comes from her dad and from her Godmother, Aunt Bunny. Aunt Bunny has always been down to play, to giggle, and to be generally exuberant and outlandish. Lindy’s dad has been her protector and her playmate since the beginning. Lindy and her dad had a penchant for getting into trouble and finding ways to get under my skin for a laugh. For a child who at times tended to take herself a little too seriously, this was a retreat from the pressures of the world. Thanks to dad and Aunt Bunny, Lindy spent much of her childhood enjoying huge belly laughs and allowing herself to let go of normal.

Surrounded by Family

Lindy spent a lot of time with family over the years. She was the first grandchild. She was the first to have Polish lessons with my mother, her Babcia. She was the first to get her way with her Poppy and Grammy, even when it irked me. In her early school years, Lindy’s Babcia walked her to and from school as it was just down the street from their house. Later they’d pick her up from school, or go spring her from daycare and then take her to Burger King or to shop for treasures at Dollar Tree. When Lindy wanted to swim, she got a kiddie pool in my parents’ backyard. I don’t think she ever wore an outfit twice with all the clothes that her Babcia bought for her. Jewelry, crayons, American Girl dolls, her own recliner… if she looked twice at something, Babcia had to buy it for her. Poppy sang with her and always encouraged her to do whatever she dreamed of. He would always say to her, “You can do it Lindy”. To this day, those words push her forward when she has doubts.

Long before our beloved Sophie arrived, Lindy was my brother and sister-in-law’s practice child. They took her camping and fishing. They played games with her. They took her places with them. She adored them and loved the adventures they took her on. They helped to instill in her a love of the outdoors, and of West Virginia.

A Few Moves

Before her high school years began, we moved to Florida and I remarried. Lindy continued into middle school and then on to high school with the same fervor she’d had thoughout her early childhood. She’s never ceased to amaze me with her courage. I can’t tell you how many times she came home from school with information about some new activity or club or group that she couldn’t wait to try. There was never hesitation, only excitement. I wish I’d been that brave as a child! She may not have excelled at them all, but she was never afraid to make the attempt. She has always been beautifully imperfect. I’ve always admired that about her.

After her high school graduation and then her first college graduation, Lindy decided to move back home to West Virginia. I suppose a part of me had always expected that to happen. I knew how much she had always loved her home state. With help from her aunt and uncle, she got a car and then a job using her degree. They were also responsible for Lindy meeting her husband, as they arranged a dinner with friends and made sure the two of them sat next to one another. They’ve been inseparable ever since. Now, after a wedding, a second degree, and a baby, little Lindy is about to turn 30. Where has the time gone?

Always My Baby

A beautiful young lady stares back at me in video calls and in photographs. She is a woman in her own right. She is a nurse, a wife, and a mother. Yet when I look at her, I still sometimes see a gangly litle girl with long stringy hair and a huge smile. She laughs and sings, and smiles the biggest when we are together. I still hurt when she hurts. I rarely cry, but let just one tear fall from her eye and I am crying right along with her because when she is sad, I am sad. When she is happy, all is right in the world. I don’t know where 30 years has gone. All I know is that this smart, strong woman somehow came from me and I am forever grateful to be her mama. Lindy, I hope you approach 30 with the same determination you’ve shown over the last 30 years. You have accomplished so much to be proud of, and I know there is still so much more to come. I am eternally proud of who you are. The little girl who taught me how to love is turning 30 in a few days, and she’s still teaching me. Thank you for the most important lesson I’ve ever learned.