When Ryan was little, he wanted a farm room. I painted a huge mural on one wall, complete with a gigantic tree, barn, pond, and animals in a pasture. Of course the ceiling needed a little spiffing up, so I bought several packages of stick-on glow-in-the-dark star dots. I pulled out my trusty sky map, dialed in the summer southern sky, and used the map to arrange the starry dots. When I was finished, Ryan had the summer Southern sky reproduced on his ceiling. It was awesome, even if I do say so myself. (Frankly, I have longed to have a sky map on my own ceiling, but it doesn't seem very grown-up.) At bedtime, we would snuggle on his bed and look at the night sky. You could clearly identify constellations and it was super cool.
He has a college-boy room now, and the starry ceiling is long gone, but I still miss those sweet days. This morning, I headed to the barn at 5:05 am as usual. As I walked back to the house after feeding, I paused to look up and was simply astounded. The sky was perfectly clear and I had a perfect view of the summer southern sky, every constellation perfectly visible. It was breathtaking!
I was instantly transported to the days of little-boyhood and the starry ceiling. What sweet memories it invoked! Just for a moment, I could almost feel those sweet boy hugs and kisses and hear the "I love you Mommy"'s all over again. Aren't memories a precious gift?
Tonight, I'm grateful I took the time to arrange the stars, for the hours we spent looking at them, the love in the farm room, and the blessing of sweet memories that allow us to experience the good days all over again. I'm grateful I've been Ryan's mom for 21 years and so grateful for such a funny, sweet son.
For what sweet memories are you grateful tonight? Don't forget to say thank you to the One who gave you those memories!
Happy Thanksgiving!
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