In Loving Memory Of Our First Godson...

Child of the pure, unclouded brow

And dreaming eyes of wonder,

Though time be fleet and I and thou

Are half a life asunder,

Thy loving smile will surely hail

The love-gift of a fairytale.

The words in this verse (whose author I failed to record) will always remind me of our first godson.  In my mind's eye, he will forever remain the child of unclouded brow and dreaming eyes of wonder, just like his first visit with Santa when his smile was as big as the smiles of the surrounding snowmen.  And he is now experiencing wonders of which we can only dream, while his brow will never become clouded by the cares of this life. 

There's no other way to say this, but to say, our oldest godson and our good friends' only son, recently died in an accident.  As you can imagine, we are still reeling from it all. 

After the shock wore off, I felt as if I had run the Boston Marathon.  My strength was utterly zapped. And I can't even begin to think how his parents (whose privacy I'm respecting) are feeling.  My heart goes out to them over and over and over again , every minute of every day.  They are two of the sweetest friends we've ever had who have blessed us beyond words. What an honor it was to be this fine young man's godparents, a young man whom anyone would be proud to call one's godson, son, or friend.

But instead of dwelling on the sadness of the loss, we are trying to remember all the fun and funny things this wonderful young man did. We choose to dwell there.

Because one day, we will see his sweet face again, and for that, we are eternally grateful. 

I keep the following picture in its accompanying engraved silver frame.  His parents gave the frame to us as a godparents gift.  In the picture, he is holding his little silver train bank we gave him. Oh, how he loved trains and airplanes! So much so that we used to go eat at the airport just so he could see the planes take off and land. Once we even had his birthday party at the airport restaurant, something he and his mom had recently discussed while looking at old photographs of his life.

He was one the funniest, brightest little boys I have ever known, a born talker (I think he was trying to talk in that picture!), and so very busy being interested in everything.  He was ALL boy, and his mother used to dress him in such snazzy little outfits. I love this next picture of him, so sure of himself and so comfortable around others.  He never knew a stranger, and that pretty much summed up his entire life. 

One of my favorite things about him was that he was SO precocious when he was little, and he spent a great deal of time performing for us. In my mind's eye, I see both his mom and his dad laughing till they cried at his antics. After they moved, his mother once told me she had enrolled him in acting classes so that, as an only child, he could learn he wasn't the center of the universe.  Well, a few weeks later when we talked, she was chuckling about how her plan had backfired. Not only did he get the lead in everything they did all summer, including the big production at summer's end, he sang "Rock Around The Clock" repeatedly till she wanted to poke out her eye!  Yep, he could even give Miss Cecelia a run for her money with precociousness. ;-)

Speaking of the latter, I think we started something when we let Celie pose for the blog.  Since last I posted, she kicked off some major art campaign and was the SPEAKER.  She's what, all of ten???  One day, when she accepts her first Academy Award, you and I can say, we knew her when!

What joy it is to love and be loved by these children. I am so thankful that our friends have blessed us with these precious godchildren and our sweet Clement, too, because it has enriched our lives far more than I could ever begin to tell you.  I love them all dearly and am grateful to be their godmother.  They are our treasure and will be so eternally.  And an eternity spent with them is heaven, indeed!

Now, before I forget, I'm on Mr. Magpie's office computer, and to answer the question so many of you have asked me, yes, I do plan to return to blogging as it was never my intent to stay away this long.  And I do intend to get a computer (I know, I can't believe I've been saying that for what seems like forever, but I do intend to get a new one and return).  So please keep the light on for me.

In the mean time, I'm trying to do things to keep my mind off of what happened and off the plethora of things calling my name with our house(s).  Next on the agenda, brick work AND exterior painting for the residence.  And just in case you think we are neglecting St. Augustine, no, we are not. She is a jealous mistress and is loudly demanding some paint touch-ups and some plumbing to be fixed there.  It's time to not just patch, but to go for it. Additionally, I have been keeping busy buying fabric on eBay and getting ideas about how to do some decorating projects from the net.  At some point, I would like to share it all with you. 

I checked into getting an "app" (is that what you call it?) for blogging with the IPAD, but I read terrible, TERRIBLE reviews about it.  Apparently, it does something like puts all of your pictures at the BOTTOM of the page.  Well, that ain't happening on this blog!  But I did learn that I could actually take pictures with the IPAD. That was hugely exciting for me!  The only problem is the quality. To wit, I used the IPAD to take pictures of these pictures I posted. It went something like this:  I took the pictures, mailed them to Mr. Magpie to his computer, and he downloaded them for me to download (or is that upload?) on here. The result is I'm afraid they are more than a bit fuzzy, much like I've been of late.

And speaking of late... the clock is ticking, and I have to run.

In the mean time, I'm sending armloads of love your way. Please take a moment to share the love with others. Hug your loved ones and tell them how much you love them. No matter if they are your children, your godchildren, your siblings, your parents, your cousins, your spouse, your friends, your teachers, your neighbors, the check out girl at the grocery store, or your caregivers, let them know how very glad you are that they are a part of your life and how much you appreciate them and love them.  If you are angry with them, forgive them. And if you are far from them, stay close with a phone call (they want to hear your voice).  But do it. Love them. It's not only their lives that will be enriched, it's yours. And speaking of you, I'm so glad to have you as a part of my life.  Thank you for being a blessing to me.  Thank you for being YOU. No one does it better, and you do it well!

XO,

Mrs. Magpie (Sheila)

P.S.  I cannot wait to show you the very generous gifts I won in a blog drawing that Sara of Sara's Sweet Surprise hosted.  You will not BELIEVE what this precious blogging friend sent me!  It was amazing, like winning the lottery and Christmas all rolled into one. Just the CUTEST stuff, very shiney, indeed!  She is just about the most creative pastry cook on the internet, too. And I mean super, SUPER creative. So can't wait to show you all the goodies from Sweet Sara. I also have to tell you about a FABULOUS product I discovered and another FABULOUS food I discovered and was blessed to receive from some super nice people. You will thank me when I do, I know.  I've got lots to tell you, so please stay tuned.  xoxoxoxox