Silhouette Surprise

Today our house seemed to be abundant in tears! Some tears were in response to a sibling stealing a favored toy, some were genuine in response to pain or fear, some were manipulative to make mamma give them what they wanted. Still other tears flow out of pure raw emotion. The kind of deep emotion that has been bottled up inside and in response to some little act of kindness at just the right moment, tears flow freely. Like when I opened my mail today to find this... This was created by a mother of a little girl in Paige's class. (You can find her here...www.SilhouettesByCarolin.com)I found out about her work a few weeks ago and knew that someday I would have her make silhouettes of the kids. I never told her, just made a mental note for myself! So when this arrived today, I was overwhelmed. First, simply by the beauty and simplicity of the artwork. This is my daughter and it is priceless! Then other emotions kicked in. I have been missing friends so much the past few weeks. Missing just the simple things like a random phone call, running into someone I know at the grocery store, or dropping in at a friends house uninvited to visit. Carolin (the artist) doesn't know me well. She doesn't know that I've been missing friends and homesick to be "home" for the Holidays. That's why it meant so much to me. Not only was it something I really wanted, but she made the effort! She went out of her way to do something for me that wasn't expected...like any friend would do! She may never understand how much this means to me, but I am so thankful for her.
Little things like this amaze me because sometimes it feels like God is sending small reminders that He loves me and knows my pain. Just when I start to wonder if He has forgotten I'm here, something like this happens and I realize He is providing for me...in more ways than I am even aware!