Have you ever sat by the water and been in awe of its beauty? Sure we see water often and most of the time simply take it for granted. But when I stop and ponder, I see the color - shades of blue that change depending on the ground level below. Deep majestic blue, light blue, clear, brown tones and some green tones. There is always movement, a forward motion, at times it is a soft stride and times there are waves that cap over with determination and intensity. Then when the sun hits the water just right there is a twinkle that can take your breath away. Ripples, have you noticed when something enters the water there is a splash and then ripples that continue to glide across the water over and over.
Today I share from this mothers eyes the beautiful "splash" that entered our lake of life and the ripple effect that she had on so very many around her. Our sweet and spicy Rae Rae. Sarae was born in Guatemala and came LEAPING into our arms when she was 3 1/2 years old. She was so very quiet when she came home, as she spoke mostly Spanish, she kept many of her words to herself. We thought she was a quiet one in the days and weeks of getting to know each other. Well come to find out that with her brilliant mind, she was soaking it all in until one day she just started speaking in English. That girl was quietly learning the language and when she mastered it she just started talking - non stop and kept up those inquisitive and chatty conversations for the rest of her life! Man that mind - she was brilliant!! She discovered her first form of communication was in her smile, oh that smile. Sarae had a way of making everyone in the room feel special simply by her smile. She was a lover of all people, she did not care what others thought of you or what group you belonged to or if you belonged to a group at all. She simply loved people, period. She made those around her feel loved for who they are and not who they should be. Sarae loved to think deep, she wanted to discover the reason for the problem to help find a solution. She used this with people, health, mechanics, cooking and planning. She had an amazing ability to discover, ponder and solve. She also never forgot anything, like anything, and for this mother any argument was ended if Sarae said you told her differently before - and done, I had to just trust that she was right, because I couldn't remember (LOL). It would crack me up when she would come home from school and say "This class is going to be boring...we learned all these things in 8th grade, why do we have to learn them again." my answer would always be, "well Sarae not everyone has a brilliant mind like you that only needs to learn it once." She would then simply help those around her in class and offer help where she could. Always thinking of others - sweet Sarae.
Sarae made a beautiful ripple effect in my life and I will always remember her brilliant mind and giant smile (and let's not forget that hair, wow!). But that is just from a mama's perspective - this girl made a ripple effect on so many in her path. Allow me to share some of the kind words that came from her friends and community.
Sarae's Ripple effect:
* Sarae had a smile that would light up a room
*She was filled with love to give - she will continue to push me to love more and deeper
*Sarae always came to my sons birthday parties
*She was wise, full of fun and simply charming
*Sarae gave our dog a middle name "leaf"
*always willing to give a hug
*the little sister I never had - that crazy hair
*Love, kindness, body surfing and laughter
*Her laugh and smile will forever be my favorite
*Only student that would smile when we would run lines
*Such a bright light in our family - she made everyone feel so special
*She wanted to celebrate each and everyday
*I have no words
*getting her small engine running (after 50 years!)
*Lots of love and God was definitely present
*babysitting for the first time - she watched a YouTube video on how to change a diaper!!
*would go out of her way to say "Hi"
*helped our daughter deal with life
*stealthily playing Nerf wars with my boys while babysitting
*Contagious smile and was smart, caring, sweet and a genuine person
*confident about her birthplace and would proudly talk about her heritage
*ALWAYS time for a hug for her "kids"
*sitting on the bench at basketball laughing
*bopping her head to music
*always so happy - would help with anything
*babysitting my goldfish
*she brightened so many peoples days including mine
Wether we know it or not we are constantly impacting peoples lives all around us. Sarae was a beautiful example of love and acceptance. How am I impacting lives in my actions and my love or lack of love? I don't know how these words or stories will impact others, but I am certain that Sarae would want us ALL to reach out, share a smile, listen to a story, welcome conversations no matter if we are the same or different. Let us all pause and see the beautiful shimmer on the lake of life - embrace one another and LOVE like Sarae LOVED. Be the shimmer in someones life today!!
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