Scrapbook.....after I take a nap.

If you haven't figured it out, parenting can be exhausting. Even after the babies sleep through the night. But does it have to be? Are all the things we run around for, pertaining to our kids, worthwhile? Some are, and some are honestly just filler to make the days go by. One such thing is documenting our children's development. There are a wide array of digital programs that'll collect, organize, display all the "memories" we document. But we still are in charge of the editing. And edit we do. We curate the particular aspects of our lives we want to display to the world and to our children.

I am currently working on my incoming 2nd grader's Pre-K scrapbook. Judge away. In doing that, I glanced at her almost completed daycare scrapbook and a page fell out. It was a fundraiser flyer for a little girl in her daycare class, who at the age of 2 battled a brain tumor, Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma, and lost her battle after almost a year at the tender age of 3.

Some may wonder why I'd hold on to this, much less include it in my kid's scrapbook. If you knew this little girl, in the brief time and interactions that I did, then you would too. Her nickname was Mariposa, which means Butterfly in Spanish. She was sweet, gentle, and beautiful. She and my little girl played well, in a season of life when they were learning many things, including how to share and take turns. She would see me pick up my little girl and she'd join in on our hugs.

I want my daughter to realize that Life, like a butterfly, is beautiful, trans-formative, fragile, and fleeting. I will talk to her about her friend, how she showed us love, and how even though our time with some people in life is brief, it well worth it to never forget the beauty that they brought with them. Lastly, I will remind her that even though her friend is no longer with us on Earth, one day she will see her again in heaven with Jesus.

These are the moments I choose to archive.