Happy Birthday Devon!

Today is the Birthday of my oldest son, Devon; today he is 23 years old.

Like every parent, I’m painfully aware of how fast the time goes by. It seems that just yesterday I was walking him to school for his first day of kindergarten. Feeling bereft as we crossed the street to the far corner of the school and he quietly told me that I could leave him now, because he would walk the rest of the way by himself.

He’s never stopped being so independent.

Just last year at this time I was thinking on Devon’s future and how full of promise it seemed. He was graduating from West Point and getting married. Now here we are a year later in what may very well have been one of the toughest years of his life.

But I think I admire and respect Devon more than ever. He inspires me.

This has been a year when it seems as if his dreams have been smashed. A year when people and situations have kept him from obtaining what he wanted, what seemed right, what must have felt needed. Yet he was doing the right thing.

What’s really inspired me is watching Devon go through all of this and not back down from who he is or what he believes. He’s not the type to proclaim statements such as I’m standing on the promises of God. Instead he just quietly tells me about how he’s currently reading The Great Divorce by CS Lewis. He tells me about how sometimes at the end of his 12-hr work day he all he wants to do is go home and crawl into bed, but that he makes himself something healthy to eat and goes out for a walk around the block or even just to Wal-Mart to walk around. It never appears to enter his mind to be upset at God or even think about denying his faith; that’s not an option in his mind. He doesn’t deny his feelings, he just chooses to base his life on what he believes to be the truth in spite of what is happening to him or how he feels. He chooses to be as happy as possible and chooses to continue to do the right thing.

As I’m here thinking about Devon’s 23rd Birthday I’m amazed at what a man of faith and character he is at such a young age. I’m grateful that God’s blessed me with being Devon’s mother.