Velvet Steel. To My Daughters

Today I am four days out from my second chemo treatment and "chemo brain" is a very real thing. I'm mentally struggling to form sentences and physically my body is showing very clear signs of inflammation. However, I am very grateful to say that the medication changes that were made after my first treatment have proved successful and, though weak, I am hopeful that I will be able to handle the remaining two treatments of Red Devil that await me.

On a different note, today is Mother's Day. A day that holds both joy and sorrow for me and many others. A day which reminds me of the five short lives that filled my womb only to slip away into the shadows. A day on which I stood in church and seriously wondered how many more Mother's Days I would enjoy with my girls. Would today be my last? Probably not. But just incase I made sure to hold them close and run my fingers through their hair an extra time.

Today was a day that I was reminded of this amazing God who nurtures His children, leads them gently, counsels them wisely and yet remains the Almighty, Powerful, King of the Universe. A compassionate God who holds the entirety of Creation together with His hand. A God who's attributes seem so contradictory yet perfectly aligned that my brain cannot grasp how they intertwine.

So as I grapple with these truths I wanted to share a song that I wrote earlier this year for my daughters. Again, it has a few mistakes (even in the recorded lyrics) as I recorded it hurriedly the night before my double mastectomy in January. I wasn't sure if I would live through that surgery or what life would look like on the other side and I wanted my girls to hear my voice just incase. Regardless of the outcome of that surgery I wanted my three precious girls to hear a call to action. My heart breaks for my girls as I know first hand that they will be required to choose between objective, unchanging truth and acceptance, friendships and perhaps even their lives. So it is with this in mind that I wrote this song. To urge my daughters to love God with all their heart, soul, mind and strength. To stand firm like steel for truth through the power of Christ. To kneel in submission to God's plan even when it doesn't make any earthly sense. To love others gently, humbly and compassionately for the sake of God's glory and other's good.

Velvet Steel

Lyrics & Melody by Rachel Davis

As I held you in wonder at your birth

I was sure you surpassed the greatest worth

You were formed in the shadows by a Hand

You were known, loved & fashioned by command

As you grow and let go of my weak hands

There'll be moments you just cant understand

You'll feel joys that will rush you towards the sky.

You'll know pains that will leave you asking why?

But dance. Embrace the treasure you're designed to be

Cling to the light that gives you clarity

Turn to the one who loves you faithfully

Be velvet steel. Stand firm yet kneel. Show kindness with zeal.

Then one day we will stand there side by side

Shadows gone as we bask in endless light

We'll be known, treasured, robed in purest white

And we'll sing as our Strength makes all things right.

So dance. Embrace the treasure you're designed to be

Cling to the light that gives you clarity

Turn to the one who loves you faithfully

Be velvet steel. Stand firm yet kneel. Show kindness with zeal.

Hold Fast to the Truth

Be Wise though a youth

Have courage though fears arise...

And dance. Embrace the treasure you're designed to be

Cling to the light that gives you clarity

Turn to the one who loves you faithfully

Be velvet steel. Stand firm yet kneel. Show kindness with zeal.