Eliza

March 17, 2019

Corned beef and cabbage, green beer, shamrocks, wearing of the green, and a big parade in New York City—it doesn’t take a superabundance of brains to figure out what day it is. We celebrate St. Patrick’s Day in honor of the man who supposedly drove the snakes out of Ireland, but who in reality was responsible for its conversion from paganism to Christianity in the fifth century. 

Patrick himself was not Irish, but British, or perhaps more accurately, Scottish, although the distinctions are a bit blurry that far back. As a teenager, he was captured by coastal raiders and enslaved for a number of years during which he was converted. Escaping back to his homeland, he soon had a vision through which he was convinced of a divine calling on his life to return to Ireland as a missionary, which he did. There is far more to his story, but it is not the reason for my gratitude tonight. 

On this day thirteen years ago, a little Leprechaun popped into our family. Eliza has brought laughter, wonder, creativity, gentle compassion, a love for all things musical and athletic, and most things academic. She is the daughter, granddaughter, and sister anyone would be proud to claim, but it is a privilege given to only a select few, of which I happen to be one. My life would be much poorer were she not in it, and I am thankful tonight that God gave her to us. Happy birthday, Lizey, our newest teenager!