Skip to main content

the good tears

I spent a good part of the nine months I was pregnant being a little miffed that I would have a December baby. I spent the better part of late November and early December just wishing she would getherealready... so her birthday wouldn't be dreadfully close to Christmas every year. I prayed that I wouldn't go past my due date and end up in the hospital for Christmas.

I wasn't that excited about having a "Christmas baby."

Then she arrived and none of that mattered anymore.
It is a special time of year to have a baby... and the hospital looked beautiful with winter decorations, Christmas trees, lights.


More, in those quiet moments alone with Stella, when I looked into her eyes, I felt like saying thank you to a Big Man Upstairs -- one whom I'm not even sure I always believe in.  

On our last day at the hospital, the most wonderful thing: I was walking back from the nursery and I heard voices behind me -- the voices of a choir singing. I started to boing! my head and blame it on lack of sleep when I turned around and saw Christmas Carolers rounding the corner and headed my way.

Hubs was in our hospital room, holding Stella. I stayed in front of the singers and was choking back tears when I burst into our room and whispered for hubs to bring the baby into the doorway so she could hear the music and see the Carolers as they passed.

Apparently, we were the only ones in our wing who cared to stand and listen -- the carolers literally congregated in front of our room and continued to sing.

Tears poured out of my eyes as I was caught up in the emotion of the season and the magic of the moment. My husband's face was quite wet, too. Nurses were watching from the nurses' station and I'm fairly certain a few of them cr

The Carolers asked us her name and then they played Away in a Manger, dedicated to Stella Claire.

I'm not sure I can explain the beauty and overwhelming joy of that moment. Call it raw emotion, call it a divine presence, or say it just tis the season... but standing there I felt like heaven opened up and something greater than me said, "You're welcome."

Merry Christmas Eve!

Comments

Travener said…
What a wonderful memory to havd. Merry Christmas to all the Murphys, big and small.
Aw, totally brought tears to my eyes.
Vicki Rocho said…
***confession*** your post made me tear up.

I cried those good tears the whole first week I was home with my daughter. It's such an amazing time. Enjoy it.
Unknown said…
You may not always believe in him, but He always believes in you!
Natalie Murphy said…
Oh, thats such a lovely memory to have! Now thats going to be her song forever and ever =)
xoxo

Popular posts from this blog

in which i have a birthday and a giveaway

The blogger as a child. p.s. it's my birthday. And people at Starbucks like me. (I did get this for free, but it was not for the benefit of my blog.)  (Obvi, it was a gift .) There's a cupcake in that box! There's a hazelnut latte in that cup! In other news, I'm having a 100 Followers/ It's my birthday giveaway. You should enter. I'm giving away the following goodies: 1. A $25.00 VISA giftcard. 2. An original poem, which will be hadwritten and autographed on pretty paper. It might be about love, about being a writer, or maybe the winner will be able to choose the topic. We shall see. This giveaway is a bit seatofthepantsspice. 3. A frame from my wedding day. In fact, this very frame: 4. A mystery. The fourth goodie will be a surprise until you open the package! 5. The whopper: I will dedicate a karaoke song to you, personally, and put it on my blog, vlogger style. If you want to enter this smashing contest: leave a comment. 1 entry if you follow and comme...

First Page Blogfester

Preface: TGIF. It has been a day. So. I'm participating in the First Page Blogfest in which writers around the blogosphere post the opening 24 lines of their WIP. (In a "real" book, this is the approximate amount of work that would appear on page 1!) This blogfest is being headed up by Kelly over at Kelly's Compositions . Please check out the other entries and leave them a comment on their work. My own WIP will be featured on Roni's Beta Club next week, and I chose an excerpt from the beginning one chapter one for critque over there, so today I'll give you the true beginning: the opening lines of my prologue. Here goes nothing. My working title is A SAD SONG IN A FLAT KEY Genre: Literary Fictionspice Prologue May 2005      Laurel sits Indian style. She faces the head of her bed and tries to focus on Cafe Terrace at Night, pretending it is priceless artwork instead of a cheap replica. She counts the tables first, and the...

love at first sight blogfest, or, go eat a heart-shaped cookie

Courtney Reese is hosting a love at first sight blogfest, in which writer's write about the icky love stuff. Check it out -- there are already a ton of entries over there. Okay, so my scene isn't really love at first sight for my mc, Laurel (in fact, she doesn't even want it to be) but this is the first time she interacts with her second love interest, David.  Read! Enjoy! Critique!      A sea of southerners filled the lobby of the movie theater. David Winter stood at a neon orange podium in the center of the throng, his head throbbing. He tore off one ticket stub after another, pointed the masses in the appropriate direction. The work was monotonous. Most of the patrons were lost in conversations with one another, and they paid David the same lack of attention that he showed them. He tried not to grimace at the giggling teenage girls, the smug looking guys in gold chains, the overweight middle aged couples: all annoyed him equa...