... From the cheering section!

Once upon a time, not too far ago in the past, the Lord gave to John and I one of the cutest baby girls to hold, to nurture and to raise … and we named her “Tiara.”  

She came into our lives with vigor and a love for life.  It seemed as if there was not an adventure that was too high or out of reach for this little girl.  At the age of 9, she was climbing the tallest pine tree around, bringing quite a lot of consternation to the crows that were there nesting.  They just couldn’t quite understand why a little girl was invading their space!  But I think they began to realize they needed to get use to it, because this girl named Tiara was going to continue to reach for new heights every day of her life.  And she has…

From trying her hardest to outplay the French girls on the city volleyball team 

here in France to trying to out-maneuver the guys on the ultimate frisbee field at university, Tiara continued to always reach forward in the area of sports.  But more than her love for sports of all kinds, Tiara continues to press ever forward to knowing her God better and serving Him more completely.  And it’s because of this pursuit … that those around her, including her family, are continually encouraged to do the same. 

This past May, that girl named Tiara - no longer the pigtailed girl of 9 - walked across her university stage to receive her diploma, with honors.  There was no hooting or hollering from her family - just the quiet sense of assurance that goes into knowing that it was not John or I who got her this far.  We had the extreme privilege and honor of watching her grow and stretch ever-forward but in the end, we knew, it was her heavenly Father who carried her all these years.  So as John and I reflect on this past graduation celebration, our hearts burst with pride at all that our daughter has accomplished and we are so excited to see what lies in her future … But two things we remain confident of:  the road ahead will continue to be filled with exciting adventures for her to experience and secondly, that this young woman named Tiara will always have her Heavenly Father leading the way forward, going behind her, remaining at her sides, undergirding her with His strong right hand and hovering above her singing sweet songs of deliverance for her to revel in.  John and I just have the extreme privilege and honor of cheering her on along the way …

You go, baby… we are so proud of you. =)