That Little Something Extra

The difference between ordinary

and extraordinary is that little "extra."

“Your baby has Down syndrome!”

Surely our physician was mistaken. I’d just held her.

Hadn’t I marveled at her strength as she lifted her tiny head from my shoulder? Hadn’t I unwrapped the pink flannel blanket to reveal all seven pounds of wrinkly flesh and counted every last finger and toe for myself?

Our child was nothing less than perfect!

Life seldom unfolds as we expect. Yet, in the unexpected we gain a greater understanding of our Father's love. It is there we learn to trust Him.

Our daughter may fall short of man's expectations, but in the eyes of her Creator, she is perfect. Knit in the secret place by the hands of the One who knows no imperfection, she is fearfully and wonderfully made and perfect for the role she was created to play in our lives.

"For you formed my inward parts;

you knitted me together in my mother’s womb.
I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made.
Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well.
My frame was not hidden from you,
when I was being made in secret,
intricately woven in the depths of the earth.
Your eyes saw my unformed substance;
in your book were written, every one of them,
the days that were formed for me,
when as yet there was none of them.
―Psalm 139:13-16, NIV

Less than perfect? Hardly. Instead, our daughter has that little something extra. Intricately woven within every cell of her body is an extra copy of the twenty-first chromosome.

I'd say that makes her extra special. Wouldn't you?

Now it's your turn to "get down." Do you know someone born with that little something extra? Tell them just how special they are.  

Please leave a comment. 

Keep your sunny side up,
Starr

Photo: Ashley in 1981 at her grandpa's farm in Georgia.