I do not have any children of my own but I'm an uncle to a few very special kids throughout this ever so small world of ours. This little nugget shown here is the daughter of my best friend's sister, who in turn is a sister to me as well through love and not by default.

My left wrist bears an image, as well as the name, of a child who passed before she could truly focus on all of faces which were ready to laugh and sing to her. The preperation of a child has to be one of the more nerve racking things under the sun; all anyone can wish for is health because everything after that is secondary. We weren't blessed with health, we were given a window of time and through that window there was a sprinkle of hope. Since I'm terrified of new born children and their rolling heads and tiny limbs, I never attempted to hold Mila Rose, instead I simply watched a family, my extended family, endure joy and pain with strength and patience.

Just as God in heaven plans each step of our lives, another opportunity was granted to our family, another Rose blossomed, with all of her petals/fingers and health. The nugget as I call her was beautiful from the moment I laid my eyes upon her. The funny thing is, whether her mother knew it or not, I wasn't given the opportunity to be a quiet observer. "IF you don't take her, I'm going to drop her right into your lap..." (her mother to me). And so it began, an uncle's love for his niece.

The greatest joys that I receive from kids is a smile and a hug! The first night I held this little one, I prayed for continued health, wisdom, and growth of all of us who will surround her. In the blink of multiple eyes, she has grown from a wide-eyed baby into a truly neat child who questions you when you're ready to leave her presence, "Uncle Teeeeeev, why you want to go home?"

As I sat and watched her consume some goodies, recently, I found it odd that three years seemed as though she just arrived yesterday, into this world of ours. I took pictures of her first birthday party, I was traveling abroad for her second, and I found myself wondering what the next eighteen birthdays will look like.

Praying for strength, wisdom, and health...

Love you kid,

Unle Teeeeeeeev