Dear Patsy,

"Instead it should be that of your inner self, 

the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit,

which is of great worth in God's sight."

1 Peter 3:4

"Do not forget to entertain strangers, 

for by so doing some have entertained angels without knowing it."

Hebrews 13:2

______________________________

What an incredible honor it is to celebrate you. 

You bring an immeasurable amount of joy and beauty into the lives of everyone around you. 

I hope this birthday we are able to return to you even a small glimpse of what you give us every day. 

Patsy, 

You are a beauty that transcends definition. 

That word is used so carelessly, 

but you are not beautiful like a 

"sunrise over the sea" 

or even the 

"first snowfall of the season."

You challenge every cliche,

 and make the stars tremble in inferiority.

You are beautiful like 

the power of a quiet touch, 

crossing tree root bridges, 

butter on fresh baked croissants, 

the way the whole world seems to dance when a storm brews.

You are what it feels like to hold a hot mug of tea,

 and the hand of someone you love on a dreary day. 

You are as boldly elegant and powerful as 

s i l e n c e .  

You are flowers in soft flowing hair, 

as close to effortlessly perfect as one could be. 

You are starry lights and barefoot dancing on summer nights. 

You are the difference between experiencing beauty with the outside senses, 

and feeling it internally. 

And you are the most beautiful expression of the unending grace of the Father. 

Patience

 is so fitting as you've shown me what it means to exhibit true 

grace and worship

 in the midst of discouragement. 

You have such an extraordinary heart for the Lord, 

and you encourage me to further pursue Him every day. 

He created you as a physical illustration of the fruits of the spirit. 

Your veins flow with an unprecedented gentleness. 

The sweet spirit you carry consistently humbles me.

You my dear girl are a beloved gem of the Father, 

Precious. 

Incomparable.

His

P R I N C E S S.

You are so incredibly loved. 

I am so thankful for you Patsy. 

I hope you have a birthday filled with 

dessert, 

laughter, 

and all of the lovely things life has to offer. 

With all my love, Meg 

Dear Amelia,

Happy Birthday sweet girl!

To be completely honest,

 this letter has been very hard to write. 
The words just keep coming up short.

I have decided, however, the only way to do this letter justice is to write it while eating ice cream.

Hemingway said,

"All you have to do is write one true sentence. Write the truest sentence that you know."

So when all else fails, 

that seems like a pretty good place to start. 

My Mia, 
you are the most extraordinary exceptionality. 

There is nothing about you that is ordinary.
You are nothing less than pure sunshine. 
Most people have to settle for golden drops of sun, 
but I have been blessed so far beyond measure with you. 

Your presence in my life acts as the most vivid reminder of the unending grace of our God.

I am in no way deserving of a best friend as loving and patient as you. 

You have the most merciful heart. 

Somehow you bring beauty out of everything, 

and love others in a way that is so sincere it could make them question even their deepest insecurities. 

You could move mountains. 
I truly believe that. 
You've moved mountains within me. 

August 19, 2013
proved that love is truly blind. 

I spend so much of my life in sheer and utter awe of our Creator.
I wish I could tell you the number of times I have sat and cried,
and just poured out my heart to God thanking Him for placing you at Eastern,
in LFP,
and directly in front of me in the trust walk line that day.
We do not serve a God of accidents.

Amelia,
I hope you know how much I admire you.
You are so much of the person I want to be when I grow up.
You are the warmest, 
most loving,
 and encouraging person I have ever had the privilege of knowing. 

You have brought an immeasurable amount of joy, laughter, and love into my life. 

I wouldn't trade our nights spent laughing on your floor for anything in the world. 

Thank you for always being there to say YES to dessert, 

go on ridiculous adventures, 

and providing all of the elegance and vivacity your spirit brings. 

I love you so incredibly much. 

Happy Birthday! 

With all my love, Meg 

                        

                        

Dear Artless Hearts,

Candidness is one of the most truly beautiful things in this chaotic mess of a cosmos. 

Those raw moments of complete honesty, 

Unforeseen and unexpected. 

Those brief moments where we catch a tiny glimpse of something natural in a world that is anything but. 

Gusts of wind snatching skirts, 

trembling stage frightened hands, 

the heavy exhale after you close the door separating you from the world after a torturously long day,

the first sip of coffee in the morning, 

 losing your tongue to your passions, 

stubbed toes, 

panicked gasps, 

wet hair, 

and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. 

The look that graces your face when you think of someone special when you're all alone, 

the first raindrop, 

  The pause after the "Once upon a time...",

untouched snow, 

the part of you that poetry shakes and lyrics sings to, 

missed steps, 

and waiting on second chances. 

My friends tease me because I notice hands. 

I think hands tell a lot about a person. 

Where they are callused and the condition they are in speaks volumes about a person's habits, interests, and priorities. 

And just like the rest of us, 

they are in a constant state of becoming. 

The way a person handles things, 

 steady,
graceful,
rough,
 strong,
 gentle,
 reckless,
 intentional,
careful,
 or careless

also often reflects how they will handle me.

Fingertips draw circles on the table top, 

tracing lines and cavort precariously at the edge, 

And he does just that around my heart. 

She tells me stories and explains the process, 

her mannerisms so much like her mother, 

graceful and intentional, 

although she claims her hands are unsteady.

And she is the most beautifully graceful and sure footed person I have ever known.

The passion flies out of his fingertips as he fuses himself to the melody.
I watch him breathe in the notes like the purest oxygen
as even the twitch of his brow speaks to the piece.
His hands hold a strength entirely their own.
Calculated and methodical,
but somehow still solicitous,
thoughtful and kind.
And he defines the boundaries of discipline and the expansion of passion in a way that scares even me.

And there is an unparalleled beauty in her eyes.
She sees into the very nerves of strangers and sets fire beneath their skin with wonder.
The wind catches her words and scatters preconceived notions and impressions,
leaving them with questions they never knew they needed answers to.

Or at least that's what she has been told.
Belief is a curiously slippery thing.

These glimpses of honesty are possibly some of the only truly lovely things left in this world.
I believe the most exquisite things about people are the things they leave unsaid.
Beautiful things don't ask for attention.

Isn't it rather offbeat that what makes you a nonpareil masterpiece
is a direct result of you being perfectly artless? 

Consume yourself in these minuscule blinks of triviality.
Organic beauty is found in the details.
Especially in the ones that are harder to see. 

With all my love, Meg