And thirty-two

Today is my 32nd birthday and I can hardly believe it. I remember my mom telling me once that she's always felt 21 ("When I was 15 I felt 21. Now I'm 50 and I feel 21.") and I totally relate. It's weird to age.

I woke up at 4 this morning to feed Evan and I was too hungry to go back to sleep. So I got up and ate and found a very sweet card and some chocolate from Jeff. My parents were visiting and took us all out for breakfast this morning and gave me a bunch of my favorite movies on DVD plus a book I've wanted for a while. My Meme and Papa called and sang "Happy Birthday" in two parts. Jeff's mom sent cupcakes. My friends called and texted and wrote on my wall in Facebook. What a beautiful flood of love!

I've been so struck lately by how rich the relationships in my life are and how blessed I am to have them.

I have this theory that we are born with only two real desires: to be known and to be loved. My children pretty much came into the world saying, "Know me and love me!" Now I see that in everyone around me as well.

Of course, as a Christian I believe that everyone is already known and loved by the God who made them. But most of us are almost afraid to believe that about ourselves. We get the message that it's ridiculous to think of ourselves as special or important and that we must do something great (or at least well-known) to deserve to be known and loved.

The truth is the opposite of what we hear. We are already known and loved. All of us. We are unique and important.

I pray that I can help others feel that way as well.