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Topic: Spring (as in the season) (11/28/05)
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TITLE: The Redbud | Previous Challenge Entry
By Pamela McMilian
11/30/05 -
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Aaron thinks his little sister is a star. Poking a chubby finger toward the black sky, he says “There she is! That must be Lilly! It’s the brightest one!” We all have something that reminds us of her. The little redbud tree, planted in her honor, stands in the front yard. It reminds me of her.
How short her time here, only three months. From Christmas to Easter. Such a precious and sorrow filled time; the pain, the pitiful cry. How we wanted to help her. We tried. But, the doctors said, “She’s fine. She’s fine. She’ll outgrow it. Be patient.” The medical world’s impatience with an insistent young mother seemed almost palpable. Repeated doctors’ office and emergency room visits with Lilly brought the same response. “She’ll be fine”.
Funny how a mother knows. Celia knew. She knew Lilly wasn’t right. When she cried, she knew in her gut it was a cry of pain deeper than simple colic. Each night she rocked Lilly to sleep only to awaken to that same cry twenty minutes later. Night after night. She tried different formulas. Lilly grew weaker. Finally, it was too late. One, then two ICU stays and she was gone. Now, of course, they give it a name. Mitochondria. Poor Lilly. She suffered so, from the beginning. Poor Celia, she suffered as well. She still does. Like a never ending tide, a young mother’s heartache ebbs and flows. Always with her, sometimes receding, sometimes overwhelming. But always there.
And then comes spring. The little green leaf buds form and burst from the trunk of Lilly’s little redbud. The little tree, a gift from my brother in remembrance of her little life. “I am alive”, the buds speak to us. Soon, the tiny pink flower buds form and the blooms open. Their sweet fragrance gently floating in the breeze. Spring. The precious reminder that Lilly is yet alive. The reminder that just as surely as spring returns each year, we’ll see her again. And, that the Creator of the seasons, the redbud and little Lilly, alone assures us “she is fine“.
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