Stretch Marks...

One of my friends from highschool, Minette, sent me an email with this story in it this morning. Im not really sure where she got it but I fell in love with the story and thought it would be awesome to share. Heres a little backround on the women this story is about: She is the mother to an angel baby named Gavin. Gavin was here on earth for a short time before he was called back home. Being such a special and valiant spirit, Gavin never had to feel anything but love in this life. He didn't have to know what it felt like to be picked last on a team. He didn't have to know what it felt like to feel lonely. He never cried over a broken heart or felt the sorrows of the world. All he knew was love, he was surrounded by it!



To become a mother, our bodies must make a great deal of sacrifice in order to bring our children into this world. We get together in our circles and compare loosened skin (you know what I mean--right?), widened hips, and even stretch marks. This post gave me greater insight as to what it means to be a mother. Is it possible that even stretch marks are a blessing... I think so.



Christ carries us on the palms of his hands, and on his feet. These, are sacred scars. We just had Stake Confrence this week and the Stake President made a comparison that changed my way of thinking. He spoke of Christ and the scars that he carries, to remind each of us, of the sacrifice that HE made for us. Then he spoke of how in this day in age we are so concerned with how we look that some of the more important things go unnoticed. We want to change things that maybe we should actually be proud of. We want to erase things, sacred scars, that we could hold dear instead. He then compared Mothers and the sacred scars they carry on their belly's, to that of Christ. We carry these sweet children in out belly's and sometimes they sign thier names across our belly's with red lines that most of the world would consider ugly. But they are sacred. Stretch marks. They are the battle scars that our bodies waged as we grew the precious bodies that would hold these fabulous little spirits. Truly SACRED scars.



I hated my stretch marks right after I had Gavin. They were so ugly and red and obvious. But then when I gave my sweet Gavin back, they became something so different. They became evidence that he was real, that he lived, that he loved me, and that at one point we were so close, we were literally one. He in me. One. Those stretch marks became his everlasting letter to me. "Mom, I love you. Thank you for bringing me here. Together for Eternity. GAVIN". And when the Stake President made that comparison, I guess it confirmed what I already felt. These are sacred Scars. Scars that I treasure. Thank you Gavin, for leaving a little "love you" note behind.
 
 
When I finished reading that I got all teary eyed...i have felt so "ugly" and tried so hard to get rid of the marks i have from my precious Preston. I will literally never look at stretch marks the same way again. I know Spencer thinks Im beautiful and I know how much he and Preston love me. I know Ill always be beautiful in our Heavenly Fathers eyes and thats all that matters right? Thank you Minette for sending this my way, it really lifted my spirits and touched my heart!