Good Monday morning...

 

… and today is our firstborn’s thirty-sixth birthday.  We celebrated yesterday and it was very apparent that our family celebrations are more focused on the next generation, that would be Malia, than on the birthday girl herself.  As Lisa and I grabbed a few things for the beach picnic, our choices were decided by our granddaughter’s liking… rather than on Melissa’s!  But in this piece, I want to celebrate Melissa and share a couple of highlights that come to my mind as we honor her special day.

Melissa has completed and passed the work required to become a licensed clinical social worker (LCSW).  In speaking with hospice colleagues over the years, this is a big deal.  It is a lot of study, and the accomplishment is huge!  I’m very proud of Melissa’s tenacity in this field of social work, especially remembering the early days of her MSW work in Child Protective Services.  She has endured a rigorous education, and practical experiences have shaped her for this new chapter of her career in social services.

At her party I asked Melissa about her skydiving experience.  That’s right, skydiving.  She strapped herself to an instructor and proceeded to lunge herself from a perfectly good airplane into the sky… and she lived to talk about it.  I will keep the reason for her lapse in common sense (my perspective) private, but I am amazed at her courage and determination.  The thrill-seeker was not naturally inherited from either parent, just saying!

Melissa has not only dedicated her career to serving others, but she has stepped in to assist her sister with the high cost of living that is required to live in Oceanside.  They share the rent and the responsibilities of providing for a three-year-old.  They are both working very hard and overcoming a lot of challenges to live near the coast.  I pray that their time together in these challenging times will be a win-win.

On this day, thirty-six years ago, Melissa taught her first lesson in parenting to her awed and super-excited father.  She was still in the OB-GYN’s hands as Lisa pushed her into this life when she turned her head directly toward me and… stuck her tongue out.  I was shocked.  My anticipation was… so different.  But the young prophet was giving me fair warning that I had no idea what lay ahead!

Happy birthday to Melissa!  She has super-exceeded the awe that I went into the delivery room with on November 3, 1989.

For His glory,

Pastor Mike