Monday, October 20, 2008

I waited almost 33 years for you...

As my birthday nears, i am reminded of what milestone i'll really be celebrating this year...

dear hayvn,

i waited almost 33 years to hold your hand.



i waited almost 33 years to kiss your cheek and nuzzle the sweet top of your head.



my little man, i waited almost 33 years to fall in love with your blue eyes, your heart-melting smile and your sometimes impatient spirit.



...and i'd wait another 33 years to hear you call me 'mama' and to see you take your first steps.



i'd wait this long and more to see you stand on your own two feet one day, to hear you argue with me passionately about politics and love, to see how you deal with your blessings and your trials, to know what your favorite color will be or what kind of music you'll like, and to find out if you love the mountains like I think you will.


33 years will pass in the blink of an eye, i'm sure, as i watch you grow...as i get to know the man that God has knitted you together to one day become...



my lovely son, you were worth the wait. and every day i am reminded that you, after almost 33 years, are exactly who I prayed you would be. my hayvn.

Thursday, October 9, 2008



[Pushes Husband off his soapbox]

We're getting fired up in the Davenport household...and not in a good way. In a way that wakes us up early in the morning and seems to stay with us as we try to fall asleep at night. I wish this could be a cute post about our most adorable boy (cause, honestly, he is the sweetest most adorable little man ever), but, alas, it is not.

This post is about lying. I hate lying. Lying, to me, is the worst form of disrespect. It's telling the person you're lying to that either 1) you don't care enough about them to be truthful, or 2) that you think they aren't bright enough to seek or understand the truth, or that 3) they're not strong enough to handle the truth. Whichever message you're trying to relay, let me assure you, none of them are acceptable.

Now, I'm about to venture into territory I always swore I'd stay away from in these types of public arenas...are you ready?...politics. Yuck. Having grown up in a very political home, my step-father having been a small time politician (County Supervisor), I know a bit about the game...on both sides of the aisle (as they say). My mother was/is a democrat and my ex-step-father (and father for that matter) was/is a republican. Let me just say this--watching 60 minutes during dinner sometimes led to some heated conversations which resulted in either the throwing of silverware or someone storming out of the room in disgust. Some might think that this would cause me to hate politics, and they'd be right about some aspects of politics. But what it also did for me, and what I appreciate to this day, was that it engaged me. It led me to believe that opinions matter. My opinion matters. It taught me that if you don't show up and participate in the debate, then you aren't worth the American soil you stand on. It also showed me how difficult it is to really reach across the aisle, cause, let's be honest, the two sides differ DRASTICALLY.

But, getting back to lying, what growing up in a political home taught me the most is that you gotta respect your opponent. You gotta believe that they have a right, a voice and an opinion that at least deserves your respectful engagement. So when a candidate lies to me it always prickles my 'hey, that's not fair' hair on the back of my neck. It causes me to take a second look at that person and ask, "why are you disrespecting me? Why are you assuming that I'm either too stupid or too lazy to find out the truth?"

As my little family and I engage in this historical election (gotta love that Hayvn's first presidential election will result in either an African American president or a female veep), we do so with an eager ear to the facts. And I gotta tell you, sometimes those facts get harder to hear among all the crap they're trying to sell us.

So, let me encourage all of you (all 3 of you who may stumble upon our blog from time to time), don't let some one or some group tell you who to vote for this November 4th. I'm getting really tired of the, "Well I always vote this way" or "That's who my [insert organization here] tells me to vote for" mentality. That's weak and lazy...and, honestly, irresponsible. This is too important, folks. This election calls--no it DEMANDS--that we all dig deeper. That we all click onto FactCheck.org and REALLY look at who's telling the truth and who's lying. Just as we all learned in Kindergarten--lying is bad.