Slowly, Surely: A Prayer For Our Daughters…
Oftentimes, birthing a human being happens Slowly and Surely.
It takes time.
Now nine months into my pregnancy, I can’t believe we are really in the home stretch. I wasn’t sure I’d make it to nine months––let alone past the first trimester, but slowly and surely here we are…and I am so thankful. This little human isn’t even here yet, but Little Miss Nova––our bright star––has already taught her mama so much about life, so much about what it means to be a woman and what it means to be a MOTHER.
If I’m being honest, while I am currently awaiting the appointed time to birth this beautiful human as I write this, she has already given birth to something great. She has given birth to a new woman…and that new woman is me.
This pregnancy has not just been about bringing forth this new life, bringing forth Neil and my first child, bringing forth my mom’s first grandchild, or bringing forth my sister’s first niece. It’s also been about surrendering to a unique metamorphosis, a much needed shedding, and a voyage full of life lessons.
One of the greatest lessons bestowed upon me during this pregnancy was redefining what it meant to find myself WORTHY.
WORTHY of health.
WORTHY of healing.
WORTHY of boundaries.
WORTHY of love.
WORTHY of self.
And in this quest of redefining what worthiness means to me in this season, I’ve also unearthed a few habitual ways in which I have not been honoring my own worthiness. Shockingly, they were subtle habits––like not honoring my own “NO,” picking up the phone because I felt obligated to talk to certain people, and compromising my alone time to engage in draining interactions––but they were also pivotal habits that needed to be kicked in order to honor my worth.
So I made a choice. I chose to separate myself from any and everything that did not fall concurrent with me honoring my worthiness. It hasn’t always been the easiest choice, nor has it always been a fast-paced choice, but it’s always been a necessary choice…
Slowly and Surely.
And my hope is that by making this choice, I am not only honoring myself, but also honoring my daughter. There are so many things I want to teach my daughter. I want to teach her how to hear music sonically––separating each of the instruments used to bring a composition together––like how her mama and her PopPop used to. I want to teach her how to smell foods in textures of scent. I want to teach her how to see even the most black and white of concepts and theologies with a hue of color, because that’s what makes life so much more special. I want to teach her how to taste the dew of a beautiful early morning––to show her how it can set her palette for the duration of her day. I want to teach her how to touch people with grace and empathy.
I want to teach her so many things. But one of the most important things I can teach her––one of the most precious gifts I believe I can gift my daughter––is the value of her own worthiness.
I want Nova to know that she is WORTHY always, in all ways, and the moment she begins to feel that worthiness is being compromised, that’s her cue to walk her pretty little self on. Unfortunately, as life would have it, sometimes we don’t always walk away when we feel our worthiness is being compromised. Sometimes it happens Slowly, but it still happens Surely.
Slowly and Surely.
And quite frankly, that’s how most of life’s lessons are learned––not at the exact moment we think we should learn them, but at the exact moment we need to which means there’s a need for patience with oneself…
And that’s what I pray for…
While I hope that Nova knows she’s inevitably worthy at all times, if ever she misplaces her worthiness in some compromised exchange, I pray that she has patience with herself to surrender to the process and whatever opportunity life is presenting to her in that moment.
I pray that for all of our daughters.
I pray that they learn life is not a sprint.
I pray they learn that no one ever arrives––for there is alway one more adventure to be had.
I pray that they learn mistakes can turn into the most beautiful testimonies if we give it time.
I pray that they learn that loss can too birth a new beginning.
I pray that they learn to take their time…
Slowly and Surely.
We’re already so rushed by social media, by our families, by expectations, by our biological clocks; there’s no need for us to put an additional time restriction on ourselves.
I pray that our daughters take their time and are generous with themselves.
I pray that they begin life center stage––knowing that they are the main character of their lives.
I pray that they dance in love, in harmony, in peace, and in prosperity.
I pray that they walk boldly with intention and confidence.
I pray that they stand straight and in alignment with purpose.
And if at any moment they forget their stance––if they forget the rhythm of their dance, may they be reminded that a new song can be written at any time….that they can walk away from what no longer is serving them…
Slowly and Surely.
May their hearts always be filled with love from a well that is ever-flowing and ever-present..and may we as their mothers––as both their teachers and their students––be adamant about pouring into their well.
May our daughters know nothing of lack––in love, in support, in prayer, nor in faith.
And may they embrace the humanities of their mothers as not a weakness, but as proof that to be human is an ever-evolving journey of growth and acceptance that happens Slowly and Surely.
I pray for Slowly and Surely…for us and for our daughters.
Always praying GOD’s love + light your way,
xo, Nic.
