Have you heard about Dax?
He is a little two-year-old with incurable Leukemia. He loves sparkly lights, and only has a few weeks to live.
So his family decided to throw him Christmas early.
And then his neighbors joined in. And their neighbors. Everyone supporting little Dax.
As I read the story on CNN, I couldn't help but tear up. It is just so heart wrenching to think of someone dying so young - and so beautiful to hear of people banding together to support a family that is hurting.
My job is hard sometimes - really, really hard. When a baby is born and something isn't right, we are often the first people to work with the family after leaving the hospital. I help babies with broken bodies... toddlers who may never walk... little ones who are so frustrated because they can't express what they have going on inside. I have the privilege of helping children learn and helping parents cope. I love my job.
Somedays, though, people are angry and there is office drama and babies cry for an entire hour while their heart monitors go off and you have to keep working because it's your job to teach.
The hard days are when stories like Dax's remind me why I get up each morning. If I can help one family feel supported, if I can hear stories with sympathy and respond with love, if I can cherish these little ones no matter what... I will feel like I've done my job.
Sometimes, lighting Christmas lights is the most we can do. And it helps more than we know.
