Losing Iris

There is pain that runs so deep that not even the arms of your most loved ones serve to fully comfort it. Only the Lord could mend such broken heart. I remember the nights after losing Iris as the longest most painful nights of my life. I couldn’t sleep. My heart was consumed with grief and sorrow. I longed to hold her, to keep her, raise and her and watch her grow.

It’s been almost 12 years now that I was blessed with the most beautiful little angel.  To a healthy 7 lb. 3 oz. baby girl; except that she was born sleeping. She was my first-born and I was completely devastated. It’s the hardest thing in world to walk into a hospital full of hopes and dreams for the baby you carry in your womb and leave with empty arms, empty dreams and a broken heart. Sometimes God allows things to happen that are not within our control. For some reason, he chose this for her and for me. My husband became such a strong tower in my life, only he knew how deeply I was hurting because he was hurting just as much. He’d hold me tight while I’d cry myself to sleep but no matter how much he tried to comfort me, I was inconsolable. The overwhelming feeling of grief, sadness, shock, disbelief, and even a strong sense of fault and regret consumed me. I found refuge in the arms of my heavenly Father. Most times I had no words, my prayer consisted solely of crying in His presence. I knelt at the foot of my bed and wept for hours on end.  I’d walk into her fully decorated nursery and grab the tiny baby girl dresses that I had hanging in her closet and weep in the presence of God. I found comfort in my Father’s arms. But even in the midst of my grief there was peace. A peace that passed all understanding. (Phil 4:7) I felt God telling me time and time again to submit myself to His will because His ways were much greater.

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.” (Heb. 11:1)

I now have three beautiful healthy strong little ones that fill my life with so much happiness and joy! They are my greatest reward. When I look at them, I can hear God whispering into my ear, “Well done, good and faithful servant; in the little you were faithful, I will make you ruler over many things: enter into the joy of your Lord.” Keep your head strong and your heart focused on God and let Him lead you where He may. I can assure you, you will be blessed. My testimony now serves as a blessing to others and although I still feel pain when I think about my Iris, I know that Gods purpose for her in my life was much greater than I could have ever imagined! I’ll always miss never being able to hear her laugh or cry, never being able to hear her say her first word, take her first step, her first day of school, to watch her grow, but someday I will get to hold her again.

My children are so beautiful to me. On the days when I’m lost in the chaos that having three little ones can bring, I remind myself that I am blessed. I remember those long, dreary nights that I so desperately wanted to fill my arms with their presence and now I am rejoicing in this moment for my time has come! Keep your focus on God, He will see you through! Submit yourself to His complete will and watch His ultimate plan unfold in your life.

God is my refuge and strength, an ever-present help in times of trouble.” (Psalms 46:1)

 

Mom of an angel,

 

Rosalinda Serna

 

 

 

Autopilot

Have you ever gotten in your car and set on route to a destination only to arrive at your destination not really knowing how you got there? You went into autopilot. Your mind just kicked into gear and made every stop and every turn necessary to get you to where you needed to go. You took no time to enjoy the view. You missed the rainbow in the sky. You missed the sun peeking out through the clouds. You missed the little old man holding his wife’s hand as he walked her to the car. You even proceeded to get off and go inside  and when you came out you couldn’t find your car in the parking area because you don’t even remember where you parked. Well the same thing can happen to us in life. We enter each day knowing our to-do list. Therefore, we proceed to take it on. At the end of the day we’re exhausted and head straight to bed. By the end of the week we find ourselves asking, “where has the week gone?”. We went through our days checking off our to-do list with no real recollection on how we did it all. We took little to no time to enjoy our children, our husband, or even ourselves.

The other day I found myself watching a video of Isaiah of when he was about 4 years old. I longed to reach into the video and hold him if even for a little while. Where has the time gone? Oh, how quickly he’s growing up! He’s not so tiny anymore. I’m sure there was definitely days when i was on autopilot, just trying to get through the day. I’m sure there’s been weeks during this past decade when I was too busy checking off my to-do list that I missed him learning something new. I know there was nights I was too tired to read him a bed time story. I know there was mornings I was too in a hurry to get him ready for school that I didn’t see how he needed a longer hug goodbye. While I’ve tried to be as present as possible in his life, (after all that is why I’m a stay at home mom) I am only human. I try to remind myself to slow down. The dishes will eventually get done, the laundry will inevitably get washed (even if it is at 1 am while everyone else sleeps).There will always be a to-do list waiting for you every morning when you wake up, but there will not always be little ones. Some day they will be grown, they will have moved out, they will be married raising a family of their own, but for now, in this moment they are ours.  So lets hug our babies a little longer, read them that bedtime story they love so much, kiss them more than once goodnight, sit and watch the movie with them.  Let’s get off autopilot and fly this plane ourselves.

Enjoy them for they’re only little for a little while.

 

Mom Blogger,

Rosalinda Serna