So I fall...at least I do it gracefully!

Yes, I confess -- I am a klutz, and I fall. Could it be my eyesight? just not paying attention? weak ankles? The reasoning is somewhat clouded, regardless, I fall. Thankfully, I tend not to do it in large groups of people. Usually, I'm alone or with only a few people in eyeshot -- at least that's a mercy! I would say that it all began when I was seven. Hmmm, if I say that, then I guess I could say the trend is all my mother's fault??? I would never do that! hee hee. So, at seven, I'm upstairs holding my 2 month old sister as my mom's hanging wallpaper by herself -- seriously NOT recommended, particularly due to the fact that it started to fall over her head. She yelled for me to run get Daddy. (Ok, I must note here, she didn't know I was holding the baby.) Being the good child that I was, I ran down the stairs. I almost made it, but my feet all tangled up on the 5th one from the bottom, and I slid down the last four stairs on my knees -- still holding the baby, thank you very much. As I hit the floor, the swaddled baby rolled out of my arms onto the floor. I was screaming, my other sister (already downstairs) was screaming, my mother (who had come running with the ruckus) was screaming, and the baby didn't seem to be breathing. Great. I had killed my sister. Nope. All of a sudden, the baby was screaming. God bless my dad in the middle of this estrogen screamfest. Whew! All was well aside from scraped & bruised knees. So fast forward to Christmas Eve, 2008. I am now an adult with a baby of my own. (Yes, there have been many falls in the interim, and I have the scars & casts to prove them.) I desperately wanted to go to a Christmas Eve service. For some reason, this season just didn't feel like Christmas, and it made me sad. Where could we go? Thank God for signs in front of churches! The Lutheran church was having one at the perfect time. So we went, and it was just what I was hoping for -- Scripture, carol, Scripture, carol, etc., etc. It was perfect. Being there with Andrew & Will was wonderful! Will "flirted" with one of the ushers most of the way through. He's such a joyful boy! Anyway, it finished, and we got out the door at the front of the crowd. It was cold, so I was bundled up and had a blanket around Will -- not so good for being able to see where I was going. There was a curb. I didn't see the curb. Not good. (Side note: since I have a knack for falling, I figured there would come a time that I would fall while holding Will. At least I had thought this through a bit. Whew!) The toe of my boot caught the curb and down I went -- left knee, roll to the side, left elbow, roll to the back. Ouch. Physical pain, minor humiliation, but great pride that my son had only lost a hat and thought it was a great game! So, yes, I fall. But, I have fallen gracefully. Hmmm...good analogy for my relationship with Christ. Yes, I fall, but thankfully, I fall on His grace every time. Now that makes me smile. :-)