One of my favorite moments with my two girls is in the morning standing before their bathroom mirror, styling their hair, making faces, and talking about our day. There is nothing more precious to me than when they share their heart with me. And something about the mirror…. the best conversations happen in front of mirrors.
This morning, as I finished up Anali’s hair, I wrapped my arms around her and put my face next to hers.
“Say this, Ali: ‘I am beautiful.'”
“I booteefull!”
“‘I am smart.'”
“I smart!”
“‘I am loved.'” I lean in and kiss her cheek.
“I loved!” She giggles and breaks away.
My older daughter, Mikayla, leaned over and said, “Do me, Mommy!”
So I wrap my arms around her, stare intently at the mirror and say, “Repeat after me…..’I am beautiful, I am smart, I am loved.'”
With a smile, she repeats, “I am beautiful, I am smart, and I am loved.”
“‘I am worthy, I am brave, and there is nothing that can stop me.”‘
“I am worthy, I am brave, and there is nothing that can stop me….. why, Mommy? Why do you want me to say that?”
I pause a long time…. so much that she fidgets a little expectantly. I slowly back up and rest my hands on her shoulders. “Because, my love, I want you to be free.”
More than anything in this life, I want my girls to live and love freely. I do not want them held back by anyone’s expectations – including their own! They do not have to prove anything to me, they do not have to become someone or do things a certain way to feel loved and valued. They are…. because they are. I wish that I hadn’t taken so long to learn this lesson for myself. A life lived freely is life. I’m so glad that God has me on this journey to find that freedom. I hope that my girls will see this quest of mine and grow up living in the light of that freedom, no matter what people say or what comes our way.
Yes! 💕
💜💜Truth💜💜