Natalie loves to sit in the kitchen with me and watch me cook and engage me in conversation.
I love leaning in and looking into her big brown eyes, with her larger-than-life-lashes, as shares her mind and the desires of her heart.
She thinks the world of me, and dreams without limits, and she speaks to me with a freedom, pureness, and vulnerability to be treasured.
I am reminded of how much she’s watching me and taking note of everything I do and say. And I mean: 𝑒𝑣𝑒𝑟𝑦𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔!
And then {tonight}, my heart was also momentarily grieved that I missed out on this type of connection as a child.
I’m grateful, too.
Grateful I get to do something different.
Some of this change in course 𝑖𝑠 due in part to poor decisions my parents made out of their own brokenness and trauma.
Some of it is also due in part to sacrifices my parents made, and the strength and resilience they developed from experiences I may never know of, or fully understand.
It’s 𝑎𝑙𝑙 led me to this place of breaking cycles and allowing God to heal and restore our family tree.
My sweet Natalie: She is a gift, and I am blessed to witness and be a part of how she’s deepening the roots of our family tree.
Shush Your Shame
Jennifer Jackson