Special Gifts, V-Day

M, my 19 year old, trash picked for me!! (oh, but let me clarify) I’ve never had a problem taking furniture that people leave at the edge of the curb, but the other day a child (A--, 12?) was throwing out stuff from her room. She had plastic bags of photographs, notes, papers, books, who knows what. Apparently M, looked through what she threw out and rescued the book Knowing God by J.I. Packer, proudly giving it to me, saying “I bet you’d like to read this one.”
It was such a genuine thoughtful gift. She said “I got it just for you” I asked, wow, where’d you get the money to buy this? And where? And she said sheepishly, “A— was throwing stuff out, and I knew you’d want this.” Then she showed off the cool stuff she got for herself!

I think/know there is a boy out there that likes M. But I’m not sure what’s going to happen. I think she likes him, but isn’t very trust worthy (of him) or confident (or herself). It could be nothing. But it was my first time encouraging one of my girls to try something a little scary. I told her she can just be his friend. He came by the house on Friday the 13th, but she wouldn’t let him come in, and she wouldn’t go out there, but just sent messengers to him. Maybe this is how Mexican courtship goes?

Valentine’s day was perfect. I had pancakes with friends (éclair! Chocolate! Strawberries!) and we watched movies and talked ALL day long. I was there for almost 12 hours. While I was there, one of the teenage boys I live with was making his “rose” deliveries. I was touched to be one of the recipients. Not quite sure how I earned it, since I’m always telling him to take out the trash, or fill up the water, or clean up the rancid watermelon or to clean up a poo diaper that a dog had drug out of the trash and onto the floor. But I was honored none the less.

*He had stabbed a hole in the top of a watermelon, and it was bubbling and fizzing out of that hole ready to rupture like a flat, oblong volcano. And it smelled bad. He said the best thing would be to throw it out, but we said we wanted to see what the inside looked like, so he carried it to the sink, started to cut it in half when it EXPLODED all over him, his pants and the floor, but not US, fortunately. Can’t decide if the mess was his fault for doing the deed, or us, for suggesting to him to do it….