Home is where you go to thank God for your Daughter…
Madison Elizabeth Jewel McKenzie was born at 8:32pm on April 10, 1990 in Lexington, Kentucky.
Her birth was planned, prepared and prayed for.
She was the “first” in many ways…first child to her Dad and I, first Grandchild to my parents, first niece to my siblings, first coo and giggle in our home, first pooey diaper, first car ride in an infant seat, first baby bath, first stroller ride, first early am nursing, first “month” birthday singing, first lullaby song, first of every holiday. She was first to win the hearts of her family who fell helplessly in love with her every move..every coo…every smile.
We knew Madison was going to be special long before she arrived in person…we could feel it in our souls…in the way we felt called to pray for her….in the gentle movements she made….
Madison, in utero, kept me up at night and slept all day…I can remember rocking my gently pregnant belly at church as if she were already in my arms…hoping to keep her awake so she would “sleep” at night when I needed to sleep…to no availJ
Madison did not come easily into this world…she required 18 hours of labor and a pair of “forceps” to her little head before we finally were blessed to hear her first cry….it was strong and it was sweet music to my ears.
I remember the nurse saying “Mom and Dad, she’s a strong one…she’s a fighter”..and, that nurse was right.
There are many things I could write and share about Madison…to open the door so you could have a peek into her life…and, if I did, you would be forever changed by the things which have brought her challenge….
Hard things, serious things, sad things, painful things.
But, then that is how she would be defined forever in your minds and that is not what I want you to remember about my daughter…
Madison is the most precious gift from God I have ever received.
I remember so many sweet things about her…the way her fingers curled around my long, brown hair as she nursed in the early am hours…just Madison and me…Mama and daughter.
I can feel her sweet little “milk breath” on my neck as I held her on my shoulder to burp her…it was a warm, sweet little velvet breath and when I close my eyes, I can draw back to those moments..
I remember her first smile…it lit up the room and my heart.
I remember her first out loud laugh…I cried with joy for the laughter yet to come.
I remember well the midway point of my maternity leave thinking and praying to God…”please help us find a way to keep me home with my baby…I cannot imagine going back to work and leaving her”…praying this prayer became my daily mission…first thing in the morning…many times during the day and at night before I shut my eyes…this way my prayer.
I was a Mother who wanted nothing more than to leave behind my career and stay home to be a mother to my precious daughter.
Frankly, financially, it would not be possible……
Or, would it.
You see, one thing Madison’s life has taught me is that with God all things…ALL things…ALL THINGS are possible…
And, as God is want to do, He provided a way….
And thus started the 21 year love story between mother and daughter….
Madison’s early life required of me that which I had never really had to do before…it required self sacrifice….
Not just the normal parent self sacrifice, but a fully committed, fully invested, fully educated and fully expended giving of my personhood….
Madison was and still is an “investment”…
But, she is the best investment I can ever make and I believe in her 110%....
Madison is a lot of things…of that we learned very early in her life..
She is verbal…she started saying words…real words so early it startled people.
She is mobile…she took her first step at 9 months and 11 days and we have video to prove itJ
She is playful…Madison is most happy when she is happy…yes, she really is.
She finds happiness in the silliest of ways…climbing the tallest tree, swinging the highest in the swing, “twirling”, jumping, leaping, soaring from bed to bed.
If it made her laugh, it made her try it….
She is a daredevil, much to my chagrin…
She is deep….Madison’s thoughts catch me off guard at times with the depth of her thought process
She is a “secret keeper”….Madison has always understood the value of keeping what someone tells you in confidence and never sharing it. If you need someone to share a private moment with, Madison is the one to go to.
Madison is authentic…Madison is probably one of the most real people I know…Good, bad or whatever, she is who she is…and who you see is who she is.
Madison is a writer, a singer, a poet…from very early in her life she could take words and put them together in such a way as to provoke thought on your part.
Madison is “Sprite”….a light spirit who is playful, teasing and joyful.
Madison is a “POW”….some would say, her mother’s daughter in that wayJ (You’ll have to figure that one out on your own).
Madison is a warrior….from nine days old until today, Madison has had a battle that most of you reading this have not had to have your child face. Thank God.
Because of that battle, Madison has faced some struggles in her life which most children…young adults do not face. Thank God.
Some battles, she managed well…some not so much.
But, the one thing I admire most about Madison is that she has never, not once given up. She may have stumbled, she may have rebelled, she may have even taken a wrong path at times, but she never gave up…she never lost sight…she never forgot “whose Girl” she was.
And, frankly, because of her battles, she has a heart I would not trade for anything….hers is a “velvet over steel heart”….one which is so gentle and tender toward others, which can see into a person’s heart so quickly…which has deep, deep compassion .
One of my very favorite things about Madison is her ability to put herself “in your shoes”…..when she loves you, it is deeply and forever. When she befriends you, it is with her whole heart..when she is mad at you, it is with thunder and lightning…but, when she holds you dear, it melts your heart in a way which cannot be written on paper..
She is not perfect, nor does she strive to be.
She is not always positive, she has reasons for her skewed view of life at times, but she is working on this…..and, as I write this today, I believe this will be different in her next 21 years.
She expresses more than she should at times, but by that sharing, you come to know her.
And, in the knowing of her, you are changed.
And blessed.
My daughter….valiant warrior, kind and gentle princess, soldierette for God, journey seeker, thought provoker, compassionate and cherished friend…
My daughter….today I bestow on you my Mother’s blessing..
“May God bless each and every day of your life as only He can. May God call your name gently and sweetly and draw you close to Him. May He fill your heart in such a way that you never feel alone. May He heal each and every single hurt you have ever suffered, may he touch each wound and kiss it with His healing…May he take your physical body and grow it strong and healthy. May the beauty that He knitted together in my womb be renewed and re-birthed in such a way that you, too, are able to see what we see…a kind, compassionate, gentle, tender, intelligent, hard-working, strong and soulful woman.
May the view of yourself when you see it reflected in others be truth…always.
May you have the courage to take the path God has set before you and be bold in the taking…surrendering yourself totally to God and having confidence that where He takes you will make you “what you ought to be”.
May you, from this day forward, live in truth with yourself…and God…for in the doing so, you will find that one path…that will lead to fulfilling your true purpose here on earth.
May you see in yourself all the beauty that is you…my sweet and Precious Madison.
I love you as only your Mama can (ILYAOYMC).
I thank God every single day, but especially on this day for giving me the honor and privilege of being your Mother…
For you, I am forever grateful,
Love,
Mama
