Dear Eisley (three months)

Dear Eisley,

When you were born, you came out with a dark mark on your forehead, your eyelid, and on the side of your tiny nose. In those first few hours of life, when your white fetal skin was slowly turning pink, we couldn’t really tell what the discoloration was. The next day the pediatrician came by and explained it was a “stork bite.” She was unconcerned, telling us it would most likely fade away in the first 1-2 years of your life.

Within the next few days, I watched a YouTube video of a baby with a stork bite of similar size and placement as yours. The mom made a video of photos of the baby over the first two years of his life, and in each photo you could clearly see the swollen capillaries fade away as the months passed by.

You are now three months old and two things have happened. First, your stork mark is already fading away. It’s far less noticeable than when you were born. Second, it’s become familiar and endearing to me. On the one hand, I don’t even notice it anymore. I am so used to baby Eisley with a faint pink patch on her forehead. On the other hand, I will miss it when it’s gone. It’s a visible marker of your infancy, and although I want it to disappear, its absence will bluntly remind me that your baby days are gone forever.

Another thing I’ve noticed about your stork bite is that people are less likely to tell me that you’re cute. And the funny thing is… you are insanely cute with your chubby cheeks, bright blue eyes, and frequent smile. And the funnier thing is that you look almost exactly like your two sisters who, as babies, were labeled “cute,” “pretty,” “precious,” and “darling” by everyone they met. But I think people see the pink mark on your forehead and it stops their tongues from overflowing with compliments about your beautiful eyes, ears, nose, mouth, and pretty red hair.

I am positive you will grow up to be beautiful on the outside, with ocean-like eyes and ruby hair. You’ll likely have long legs like me and just the right dose of your daddy’s athleticism. The raspberry on your forehead will disappear in just a few months, but I’m sure you’ll hear how pretty you are for years to come.

You’ll never really remember your stork bite, except by photos, but I do hope you remember this… external beauty is fading, but the beauty within your heart will last forever. The world looks for rosy cheeks, white teeth, tan legs, and perfectly colored foreheads. People are quick to praise attractive faces, but also quick to withhold compliments for the smallest imperfections. I pray you will never find your worth in the praises or critiques of the worldly masses who judge by the worthless standard of outer beauty.

May your beauty always flow from within, because nothing in this world was made to last. May your heart be filled with peace and joy that radiate to your outer countenance and invite people to know the One who created our exquisite world. Your forehead will be smooth for the next few decades and then I hope it fills with fine lines from a lifetime of laughter and playing in the sunshine. Those wrinkles may be ugly to the world, but they are beautiful to God.

Love,

Mama