WHEN THEY COME TO YOU
This is us. Well, the us before my us. This was before a lot of things. This was precisely 2 months before I gave birth to the greatest change in life, becoming a mother to a daughter. But between me, Mom and Dad, nothing's changed. They still remain the parents who love fiercely. Who won't back down. Who show up when you need them most. Who will come to you when you simply can't come to them.
I'll never forget the year I moved to Glasgow, Scotland. Yes, the United Kingdom. Across the pond. I must have broken my mother's heart. But I was 28 and didn't know better. And I was in love. Or whatever. And so I moved. And on Christmas Day in Scotland, I picked up my parents at the little Glasgow airport and it finally felt like Christmas. And it was Christmas. And it was magic.
Flash to 13 years later and I live in America. Nashville, TN. And I married an American Southern boy who stole my heart. And now, I'm a parent. So naturally I cringe at the thought of my daughter saying to me one day, "I'm moving to Europe with my fiancé, so I won't be home for Christmas." Literally the image makes my heart stop. The thought makes me nauseous. But the truth is, if she flew across the pond or anywhere for that matter, I'd follow that airplane into the sunset and I'd be there on Christmas morning too. Because that's home. Family and togetherness, that's home. That's love. And that's why we give grace.
Today, I still live in Nashville, Tn. And it's home. It's not across the pond and in another country, but it's 2000 miles from California. Far from Mom and Dad, and my sister and brothers. And just when I thought we wouldn't be together again this year, they came to us. They brought their love, their hearts, their luggage and all the grandparent snuggles you could imagine. Because that's how they've always done family. And this is why I do family the way I do. It's how I was made. It's how I was taught. And it's how I'll always be.
I know it won't always be like this. I know I've missed many a holiday without them here and they have all missed me in California. And as time marches on, the idea that they won't come to Tennessee because they won't be here is unfathomable. But none of that matters today. What matters is this. This thanksgiving I'm giving all the thanks. For this love. For this family. For parents who stand by their word. And who love with no conditions. And who teach me to love the same. And on Thanksgiving, as I'm sitting here prepping the meals, waiting on my sister to arrive (yes she's coming too and I'm so excited I could scream), I'm stunned at God's grace. And the very thought of this life. And I give thanks. For the air I breathe. For the babies who are sound asleep. For their daddy. For this little family I get to call my own. And today especially, for knowing it isn't always easy to travel home with babies and when your parents know you can't come to them, that's when they come to you. And isn't that just the most beautiful thing in the whole wide world? Happy thanksgiving to everybody. To us all. We are so lucky. So let's spread the love. And then some. And then and then some.
