Waves

Three daughters, each special in her own way. Last night I was looking at my middle daughter’s Facebook profile. I noticed one of her friends was planning to visit her soon and thought how nice that would be. Carrie’s almost halfway around the world.

I hadn’t heard from her for several weeks, so I sent her an e-card last week, just to tell her I miss her. She sent me an e-mail a couple days later. She had gotten my e-card at home, with all her children gathered around, and she started to cry. Her youngest daughter announced that she, too, missed her Mama’s Mommy and thought they should take an airplane in the morning to go and visit. It made me laugh, of course.

But Carrie has always made me laugh. When she could barely talk, she hid my pajamas in the nightstand, and laughed with a gleeful sparkle in her eyes. She made an impression on my future in-laws by hiding everyone’s shoes in a cherry tree. She was the only of my girls who could laugh and cry at the same time.

She is my middle daughter, and that always seemed like a tough spot when she was growing up. One day I just happened to see a greeting card for a middle child, talking about

Last night when I looked at her facebook page, I saw she had uploaded a new photo of her, her husband, and their youngest son. I downloaded it and showed my husband. She looked so cute and happy. Again, as she so often does, she made me smile.

This afternoon I got a phone call–a voice mail, actually–from Carrie’s father. He said she had had a mild heart attack. When I called my oldest daughter I found Carrie was still feeling chest pressure and heartburn. Last I heard, she was on her way to a heart institute. Now I am just waiting. And trying to stay above the waves.