To My Almost Seven Year Old

If there is one thing I know, it's that just yesterday you were a toddler and there is no way you will be seven years old tomorrow. But here we are, and as hard as it is for me to accept the fact that you are just 13 inches shorter than me, I love so many things about watching you grow.

You are focused and determined. This is especially easy to see when it comes to sports. When you set your mind to learning a skill, nothing can stop you. You will spend hours shooting the basketball or rollerblading in the driveway. You and your Daddy are in the habit of playing basketball until after dark nearly every night. You love the movie "Pistol Pete" and are always trying out drills that Pete Maravich does in the movie. You are super coordinated and I really think you have the ability to do anything you put your mind to.

I am always amazed at what a great big sister you are. Just the other day I was out for a run and when I got back home you and your brother and sister were in the driveway playing basketball. I hid in the shadows and just watched for a few minutes. You were directing the action so that everyone would get a fair turn, and you always let AK shoot twice if she missed the first time. Yes, you and especially AK fight like cats sometimes, but most often when I watch you relate to your siblings I see compassion and a nurturing heart shining through. You take your responsibility toward them so seriously and I love that about you.

 I asked you to make a list of what makes you happy, and you wrote: fall, a pool, and books. In fact, the only thing you asked for your birthday this year was a swimming pool. I'm sorry we couldn't get that for you, but you do seem to really like the mountain bike we got you instead. You love to read on your own, but you still love for me to read to you as well. You especially like historical fiction; we are reading "These Happy Golden Years" by Laura Ingalls Wilder right now. You are a great storyteller, with your expression and attention to details and massive vocabulary. You are learning to play the piano and have just begun violin lessons as well. You have the peculiar ability to argue with a brick wall, and also the hidden talent of staying up three hours past your bedtime every night. (Last night I went to sleep before the UGA football game was over, and when things got exciting at the end of the game at oh, about 10:30 PM your daddy went to your room to get you to watch the end of the game with him. Because, of course, you know...you were still awake.) You also have your own sense of fashion and you really enjoy shopping for clothes (within budget, of course.)

Fairness is one of the values that you cherish the most. This can be a problem for you because the world most often does not operate according to the same ethic, and that is so hard for you to process and come to terms with. It can also be a problem for you when fairness eclipses grace in your mind, but you are growing in this area. Mostly I think (and pray) that the Lord will use your black and white mindset to fight for justice for the oppressed.

You love to draw, write, and create. In school you are doing well in all areas, but your favorite part of any day by far is being around other people. You love to see your friends and to do special things like field trips. "Normal" days are hard for you to bear. You continue to ask the most insightful and detailed questions about everything, including faith and Scripture.

Claire Alyse, your name means "clear, bright, beautiful, and noble;" and that's exactly what you are, and what you are becoming. I love you so much, my sweet almost-seven-year-old!