Lift

About an hour ago, Abe and I were sitting at the dining room table having an early dinner. It's pouring out. I heard the rumble of a big truck, looked out the front window and saw a brown UPS truck stop in front of our house. I said to Abe, "Look, a package for somebody. Probably for dad." Ted orders a lot of boring stuff like ink cartridges online, so I figured that's what it was.

I met the deliverer at the door and saw it was for me. I felt that little rush of excitement that comes with "brown paper packages tied up with string." Abe immediately started pouting and saying, "I never get packages!" Oh well, little buddy, this one's for me.

I open it up and see a box of Target wine. I love that stuff, people. Love it. I started laughing. I told myself I should read the card first but I just ended up digging more in the box. A group of three friends in different parts of the country had gotten together and sent me things they knew I liked. I laughed and laughed and then laughed more. I couldn't stop smiling.

Mission accomplished, ladies.

Earlier this week, a friend who is awaiting news of a court date spent the afternoon and evening at our house, just hanging out with the neighborhood kids, eating dinner with us and watching Abe's new jig. We were talking at one point about how one of the really nice things about going through an adoption, especially when things get dicey, is how genuinely nice people are to you. It's really true. We talked about all the surprising people in our lives who we may not have a lot of consistent contact with but who suddenly go out of their way to be supportive and kind, like one of Ted's old college roommates who called me out of the blue this week to tell me how much they are thinking of us and praying that things turn out well.

I have had so many of these experiences. A few:

A fellow Gladney mom who I have never even met in person sent me a huge box of hand-me-downs from her 9-year-old Ethiopian daughter. Inside were clothes, barbie dolls, shoes, toys, amazing things a little girl would like to have. This box was crammed full of goodness.

Ted brought me cadbury eggs this afternoon.

About a month ago, two wonderful friends hosted a gathering to celebrate Bee. It was beautiful and thoughtful and they were handing me mimosas throughout, and I drove away feeling loved and excited about the women Bee will have in her life.

Another friend secretly organized a "blessing way" for me. Almost every day for the last week, small packages have arrived in the mail with supportive notes and beads, beads with special meanings that often make me teary, like the one that is a tiny golden bumblebee.

This world is full of kindness, skittles, goodness, boxed wine, generosity, thoughtfulness, beads, showers, lovely hand-written notes, brown paper packages, and Ewan McGregor...all things that lift my spirit. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

At the moment, our nephew is showing our neighbor the scar from his spleen surgery while two little boys run around the house wearing superhero capes and fire helmets. It's loud. Really loud.

But this is what I will be doing when things get quiet around here.