Memorial Box Monday- The Slide

    I have had this story in the back of my mind to tell for awhile but it still makes my stomach turn when I think of it. Life can change in an instant and is so very precious.
     Last Winter, the kids and I were playing on the playground after school. They were running around laughing and screaming their heads off, blowing off steam from the day. Just as some of their friends were leaving, they begged them to stay and play. So Judith decided to stay, "just for a few minutes" with her boys. Georgia was still so very new to us and I felt so protective of her. It had been months since we had adopted her and she had her open heart surgery but she still was my baby and after walking through so much, I tended to hover. I was working hard on learning to let her explore, give her space to learn what her now-strong body could do.
    So I let her toddle around, watching her from just a few feet away, standing below her as she climbed the stairs on the playground. She was proudly wearing this bright pink poncho sweater that was mine when I was a little girl. She giggled as the long tassles with big pink balls bounced when she ran.  Judith and I were talking away. Georgia, standing at the top of the ladder, pointed at me saying, "Up Mama, Up!" So, Ugg boots and all, I cilmbed up the stairs to join my little girl. She pointed to the slide and said in her loudest most exuberant voice, "Lap Mama! Lap!"
    So I snuggled her up, making sure her arms and legs were tucked in tight and would not get hurt and down we zipped in the crisp air. When all of a sudden something went terribly wrong. I heard her make a noise and kick her feet. My weight was pulling us down but we had slowed for some reason. I looked at Georgia and saw that her lips were turning blue. I looked up the slide and saw that one of those pink tassles was lodged between the slide and the wood. My little girl was being strangled. I pushed and pushed frantically with my feet but my boots had no traction and slid out from under me. I rolled to my stomach to try to push her back up but I just slid again. Hot tears came and I could hear myself scream for help.
     Judith ran and was able to reach up and unlodge the tassle. We slid down and I got that sweater off as fast as I could. Georgia cried and cried and my tears mixed with hers as I saw the long cut on her neck. My little girl was alive but it could have been so different. What if I had been alone?
   The Lord had known...He had brought Judith. He had saved Georgia before the accident even began. To this day I see that scar on my baby girl's neck and cannot thank God enough for that miracle.
   I my Memorial Box? Those two bright pink tassles that I cut off as soon as we got home.
      If you want to know more about Memorial Boxes you can visit Linny's blog: