Week 34:

This blessing took place the week of May 18^th – 19^th

 

I am blessed to have the family I have, I absolutely love my brothers and my sister, well sisters if you count the other Jennifer. I'll save her story for another day. My sister Nicole lives in El Paso and has 4 beautiful children, Malachi, Kiana, Nevaeh, and Marcus all of them Asian and each of them a miracle in their own way. Malachi, brought the family together, Kiana born on her daddy's birthday & 6 weeks early fighting for her life, Nevaeh, was growing in the womb when Nicole had an extensive laparoscopic surgery to remove some endometriosis; hence the name Nevaeh it's heaven backwards, because she truly was a gift from God. Sweet Marcus is the last of the group and I guess the perfect one… They say parents stop having children when they finally get it right. I love all of my sister's kids they each hold a very special place in my heart but I do share a special bond with my niece Kiana.

 

People say she is my mini me. Ladies from the church who watched me grow into a young woman say they are reliving my life through Kiana. Like me, mom's death was hard for Kiana, she too shared a special bond with mom. It's like we understood each other without even speaking, a simple look explained our pain, joy, or anger. I realize most people can do this anyway if you really know someone, but for us it was different it's almost supernatural. We just simply "get each other".

 

My mom actually got sick on Kiana's 6^th birthday. I think Kiana was having a Princess themed party and mom went to Wal-Mart to buy a few last minute party supplies. While at Wal-Mart she became ill and started vomiting blood and was rushed to the emergency room. Mom never made it Ki's birthday party in fact she didn't see her grandchildren again. Like Daniel's birthday Kiana's is also a little bittersweet. It brings with it past memories of beautiful birthday celebrations but also the memory of my mom getting very sick.

 

My sister tries to still celebrate Kiana's birthday in a special way each year and to focus on Kiana and her life instead of my mom and her sickness. However, this year due to some unfortunate events they weren't able to have a party or family dinner like they have in the past. Kiana did get a small celebration with cupcakes and gifts but nothing like a typical Kiana celebration. You see, she is like me and even though we don't admit it we want people to celebrate us and the bigger the celebration the better!

 

Since I was in town and I learned that Kiana was still a little disappointed. I asked Nicole if I could take Kiana out on a Phoo-Phoo (that’s what my nieces and nephews call me, pronounced foo-foo) and Kiana date. A time for us to get some quality time together without any of the other kids, just me and her together. We went to lunch at Furr's it’s a buffet kind of like Golden Corral. She wanted Chick Fil A but it was Sunday and they were closed, so Furr's would have to do. After lunch we went to her favorite store to pick out something new. She got the cutest shirt ever and it was a perfect fit. After that we went to Pops and Julie's house to watch some TV without the other kids. We had a great time talking, laughing and enjoying each other's company.

 

Kiana and I will always share a special bond but I hope to be able to do what I did for her for each of my nieces and nephews someday. I want to invest in them the way my mom would have, she wanted nothing more than to be a grandmother someday and spoil our children. She loved my sister's kids and she did spoil them, a lot.

 

Kiana, you are a beautiful young girl and I pray you will always have a sweet spirit. Continue to be willing to serve anyone and everyone just like your Gigi did. You are a blessing to those who encounter you because of the sweetness of your spirit. Don't let the world harden your heart, guard it in the ways of the Lord and continue to grow in his ways. He will never leave you nor forsake you. I'm proud of you. You are beautiful, smart, and in a lot of ways you are your mother's daughter. Even if people say you are my mini me, I see so much of your mother in who you are becoming. She's an intelligent woman who can earn the respect of men who she works with and for, something I pray you learn. Allow people to see you as a person who is intelligent, and not just a pretty face. This and many other things are things your mother will teach you as you continue to grow. Listen to her wisdom she really is wise beyond her years. She's overcome so much. She didn't always do things in the traditional order or the way she probably wished she would've, but she never let her circumstance define who she was or who she would become. Every failure became a success; because anytime she was knocked down she got back up. She held her head up high; she kept on fighting the good fight, and kept moving forward, never looking back. Learn from this don't let your circumstance, your past, or your failures hold you back. Embrace your circumstance, learn from the past, and turn a failed attempt into something successful.

 

You have a bright future ahead of you. Always remember your Gigi loved you and your Phoo-Phoo will always be here to help you achieve what God has called you to be. But above all else remember to bless someone as often as you can, you'll learn to appreciate what you have because you'll learn not everyone is as blessed as you are.