I’ve had pain in my life. Some of it inflicted on me by others, some of it I inflicted upon myself, and some of it was just because we live in a broken world. I imagine we all get a hefty dose of it at some point during our time on this earth. Sometimes it wells up inside, looming large in my heart, remembering things that cannot be changed, pain, loss, regret. I still have a ways to go in this life, and I know there will be bumps, dips, mountain highs, and dark valley passes. When I was a child I thought what made life good was the grand gestures, Christmas morning, fireworks in the sky. Now that I am a woman, I know that what makes life good is the small things, foreheads touching, a palm on my cheek, a tiny voice calling “mama” in the night. That is the sweetness. My 87 year old grandma recounts a memory from decades ago of her baby twins, about the same age as mine, playing in the yard, one tickling the other with a pine needle. That is the sweetness. Watching Lily wrap her arms around Avery and lay her head on her 22 month old sister’s shoulder, that is the sweetness. It tips the scales in our favor, against the pain. It is the bright light that overcomes the darkness. Every night when I lay down, I pray to God in the same way. I thank Him for this day that He’s given me. I thank Him for Jesus. I ask Him for forgiveness, and I thank Him for the sweetness.

Lily cherished this letter she and Avery received from their cousin Lauren.