little maddie

i opened my email and discovered i had a new follower today, alphamummy and i clicked on her profile to check out what she is promoting. my chest tightened and i felt instant grief when i read her article about a popular mom blogger's 17 month old unexpectedly passing away last week, maddie. reading this mom's blog, i realized how easily this could be me or anyone i know facing this tragedy of losing their little one.

there's nothing that could prepare me for a blow like that. my mind can't wrap around the thought of it. she has pictures, just like me, of her baby with her - kissing her and laughing with her. one of her earlier posts this month she realizes that she'll be coming to the park more and more often as little maddie grows and plays with the big girls.

as a Baha'i, i know the next world is a place for maddie to still continue to spiritually grow, where she will be loved and nurtured. it still doesn't ease the pain of her mommy feeling robbed of that chance. it doesn't take the sadness away that i feel for this family in trying to deal with the emptiness and the silence of a home where her voice and her footsteps once were heard.

in the parenting course that i facilitate, we talk a lot about the virtue of strength. it takes strength to parent well. the virtues card for strength reads...

strength is the inner power to withstand whatever comes. it is our capacity to endure in the midst of tests. we grow in strength as we tackle life's challenges with courage and determination. we deepen in strength when we choose gentleness and practice patience. we stay strong when we recognize that suffering is a thread woven through the design of our lives, not to make us unhappy, but to transform us with grace.

O God! Guide little Maddie's spirit and allow the angels of the Abha Kingdom to embrace her.