When I was a teenager, I did a lot of babysitting to earn extra money. And almost all of the children I sat with were girls. So when I got married, I always said I wanted two kids. A girl and a boy would be ideal, two girls would be good, but heaven help me if I had two boys! I hoped the first one would be a girl. But from the time I was a little girl….as far back as I can remember…..the main thing I wanted in life was to be a mom.

Thirty six years ago today, the most amazing thing happened. God blessed my life with a new baby. A boy. When he was born, I couldn’t believe how easy the birthing process was ( yes, I said easy) and I also couldn’t believe how incredibly ugly this little bundle of joy was. He had black hair on his shoulders, on his ears, and attaching his eyebrows to his hairline. He also had an obvious cowlick smack in the middle of his hairline. Paul goes ‘oh, isn’t he cute!’ And I say ‘Goober, I love him, but I’m not blind.’ He did have a cute dimple that showed up when he yawned. When my parents arrived at the hospital, they were so excited to see their ‘beautiful’ first grandchild. Every hair on his head stuck straight out and he looked as I described above. Mom goes ‘welllll……he has a pretty mouth.’ The first gift they gave him was a baby brush and comb.

Fast forward three months, and the Plsek family trekked home to Texas for Christmas. What a surprise for the grandparents……in my arms was the most beautiful baby in the world! He still had the dark hair but thankfully, the ear and shoulder hair had disappeared. He had long dark lashes and the most brilliant blue eyes. He was happy all the time so his constant smile showed his cute dimple to all who stopped to admire his beauty.

Somehow, and I swear it happened in a couple of years, that precious baby grew up to be a man. And not just any man, an amazing man. He is one of the kindest people I know. Not only have I never seen him pass up a person asking for money on the street without giving them something, he will stop and chat with them, and treat them so respectfully. When the two of us would go to our beloved hockey games together, I would see him get out a bunch of dollar bills as we were leaving, for he knew there would be people begging. His kindness extends to little children, the elderly, and all of us in between. It was tough moving away from him when I came to Tennessee, but he was truly happy for me to start my new adventure.

It’s hard to believe that thirty six years have passed since I realized God thought I needed a boy instead of a girl. Thank you, God……You always know what’s best!