Ronee' writes about Christmas and also her upcoming twelth birthday.
Saturday, December 18, 2004, 2:19 p.m., C.S.T.~
Dear Journal~
Hi! This is your friend, Ronee' Le-Anne Reaux! I hope you are well; I am not well yet, but I am definitely feeling better than I WAS! (I am getting over a cold, and I missed a good part of school last week, including the Christmas party yesterday, which made me mad!) I still don't feel great, but at least I AM headed in the right direction!
In only a week, I will be turning another year older. I will be turning 12 years old on December 25, 2004, ON Christmas Day! (I was born in December, on the 25th, nearly 12 years ago, me and my twin sister, Robyn.) It seems that only yesterday when I was a little snotty-nosed kid who cried about everything; now I am turning into a young woman, and the signs of "womanhood" are becoming apparent on my body. I don't look so much like a little girl anymore (I still have the round cheeked face, but that's coz I am on medication; it's one of the effects of it), and things that once held my interest (like playing with dolls or playing pretend or watching "Sesame Street" or "Mr. Rogers' Neighborhood" on tv) no longer interest me. I am more interested in things like the latest trends in fashion, the latest music stars (all genres), and gabbing on the phone or hanging out with my friends.
I am growing taller too: I am now over 4' tall, and I weigh over 60 pounds now. I am still short for my age (I still look younger than my classmates; I look like I am no older than nine), but that is okay: at least I am still growing!
I find myself enjoying my Christmas birthday. This year I have learned that I should be grateful because when I was born, doctors had no hope whatsoever for me to survive (I was born 3 months too soon, and I weighed less than 1 1/2 pounds at birth; I was also born with a lot of breathing problems and stomach problems that required surgery), but I guess God had the last laugh on THEM because I am still here, and I am still fighting! Maman has always said that I was a tough little scrap of a kid, and I find that to be so true because if I want to do something, I WILL do it, NO questions asked, and nothing--or NOBODY--will stop me!
I also find my Christmas birthday exciting because I get extra attention (I LOVE that; what kid doesn't??) from my family and my relatives, and I love the idea that I don't have to spend my birthday at school. School is closed for two weeks for Christmas and New Years, and I have all the time in the world to do whatever I want! I also love the idea of getting presents or money from my family, and I love the twinkling lights and all those pretty carols that I hear on the radio! I also love the coldness of the winter season, and I love the tickle of tiny snowflakes on my cheeks whenever I go outside!
I used to get all bent out of shape about having a Christmas birthday, but those days are history. I now enjoy it, and I especially enjoy it now that I am older (and more mature). I also enjoy it because I nearly didn't make it TO twelve (or nine, ten, or 11, for that matter!) four years ago. I suffered a stroke on my eighth birthday, so I had to spend Christmas (AND my birthday!) in the hospital, fighting for my life! I recovered, thank God, but I still have some small side effects from it today, four years later. I still have numbness and tingling on my right side, and my hand still feels all weird. I can move it just fine, with no problem, but it still feels abnormal, and it is really weird. It's like I have pins and needles in it all the time, and it can get way past annoying!! My side is the same way, but I can use it, and from looking at me, you wouldn't think I even HAD a stroke!! But I DID, and I SURVIVED it; and I am very glad I did!! That was probably my worst birthday, and I am so glad it is behind me now!!
I am a Miracle Child, and I guess God has plans for me coz I survived my stroke (and a whole lot of other things!!), and He keeps on blessing me, year after year. He has given me a family I can call my own, renewed strength, hope in the face of uncertainty, the Saving Grace of His Son (Jesus), a loving church family and a church that teaches the Word, lots of great friends who stand by me in times of trouble or triumph, a voice that I can use to touch others and also teach them about God and His Mercy and Grace, and the ability to write, think, and show compassion to those who are hurting. I don't know what else He has in store for me, but He sure has done a lot for me now!!
I am so glad I am going to be 12 in a week...who knows what will happen on that day, but I DO know this: I AM looking forward to it, and I am really looking forward to Christmas! Christmas is always a great time at our house, and it is my favorite holiday of all time!! So MERRY CHRISTMAS if I don't write in here, and a Happy, Healthy, Prosperous New Years' too!!
~Luv, your Christmas Birthday friend, Ronee' Le-Anne Marie Reaux, SOON to be *12*!! :) *HO, HO, HO!!*
An interesting write, hopeful and optimistic. A good character study as well. One of these days, I'd like to see you try something like this in third person, instead of first. This would move you you out of the "inspirational" genre into mainstream fiction, which I think you'd be just as good at.
Reviewed by Kate Clifford
12/18/2004
Thanks for the sharing of another wonderful letter full of hooe and a slice of life.
For the past two years (2006-2008) The Bridge of Silver Wings has earned a name for itself both as a series of poems published in different e-zines and as a book first published in 2007.
What makes this 2009 edition a special one is th
Christmas - only days away; plastic snowmen and glowing reindeer adorn the lawns of neighborhoods all across America. All is calm, all is bright, and yet there is something tragically wrong about this Christmas night.
With swift passage thr
Saturday, December 18, 2004, 2:19 p.m., C.S.T.~
