Among the several joys we have discovered upon moving back to Texas—closeness to family, lower overhead in most life activities, rain!—I have discovered another something I love about the place in which we live. Stars. The Texas sky over our heads is like a giant sieve for heavenly glory. It’s almost as if God placed the stars, and made the universe so unfathomably vast simply in order to remind us of how small we are. But not that said smallness is a bad thing.

I don’t want to write a cliche, but it’s true: Having a baby changes everything. Every day I am astounded at how wonderful it is to have been a small part of bringing such a beautiful girl into the world. My baby girl is growing quickly, and I’m constantly amazed at how she sees the world. Her eyes are taking it all in, and it’s fantastic to watch her make new discoveries with her movements. “Hey I have a tongue, and I can make it go in and out!” “Ouch, when I make this hand hit my face, that hurts.” “Wow, look at that fan!”

She is a wonderful salve for my seemingly neverending cynicism. They prayed a blessing over her at our church. It began with the following sentence:

With each new child comes the message that God is not yet discouraged of man.

That phrase gives me hope, even amongst the smallness I feel among the backdrop of the wide open sky full of stars.