I am Thankful for Camdyn's Birthday

Today was Camdyn’s seventh birthday. That is hard to believe. Seven years ago she was born in the Methodist Hospital in Memphis (Germantown), Tennessee. I was in the room, the result of poor planning and a speedy delivery. As the labor progressed at a normal pace I had sat in the corner of the birthing room learning how to upload pictures to my new computer and then to the internet. I wanted everyone to see my first grandchild the day she was born. I sat there with two cameras, a laptop, and ten feet of wire in my lap. The previous exam had indicated it would be hours before the birth. But thirty minutes after that the staff was scurrying around saying “she’s here, this baby is being born.” By the time I got untangled she was “crowning” and I had my video camera going in time for her to be placed in the warming basinet.

The last thing on my mind that morning had been the possibility I would be in the room when Camdyn was born. Neither was I prepared for the impact of her birth on me. I had anticipated great joy and a sense of pride, not to mention relief if all went well. I knew my life was going to change. What I didn’t expect was an overwhelming sense of responsibility. I felt just as responsible for her as I had for Alethea and Karisa when they were born. Only, now I also had a keen awareness I had no real voice in the major decisions of her life. I was responsible, but I had no authority; all I had was the possibility of influence and the influence of prayer. That day I became more keenly aware of the influence of my mother’s prayers on my children’s lives.

As seven years have unfolded what I have discovered is that the birth of Camdyn was just the down payment on one of God’s greatest gifts. I have been privileged to watch her life unfold and to marvel at her beauty, grace, sensitivity to others, considerable talents, and most importantly her love for God. Seven years ago I prayed she would be born healthy to grow to know God, love Him, and serve Him with all of her heart. When I first held her I whispered into her ear, “I love you and you are loved by God; you can be anything you and He desire for you to be.”

Tonight, I wonder what her future will hold. I am concerned about the trials and temptations she will face. Satan has a whole arsenal of weapons that were unknown in my youth. Yet, I have great confidence in God and her. Together, she will become everything he intends for her to be and that will be magnificent; it already is.

Haymarket, VA
October 30, 2010
JDJ