She knew her Daddy gave her the present. she knew she had to handle it carefully. She knew she couldn't do it alone. That's why she kept giving it back to him and telling him she just didn't feel ready. Then he really gave it to her. And she had no idea the joy she would receive from such an amazing gift. She wanted to take it with her everywhere she went. She wanted to experience everything all over again because somehow it was new this time. She wanted to see how different it felt to have this gift with her when she worshipped God from the mountains, and she wanted to take it wading with her in the river. She wanted to watch shooting stars with her gift, and smile knowing that what she'd always wished on was now right there with her. She wanted to listen to the crickets on warm summer nights, and play in the sand as the sun went down. She didn't really care where she was, as long as her gift was with her and her Daddy was watching.

But she didn't realize it was broken. She didn't realize how much time it was going to take and how much patience it was going to require. She didn't know that all of that time alone with her Daddy she was being prepared for this very moment.

For such a time as this.

So she sat the broken pieces down and she stepped back. She cried and she waited. She watched and she prayed. She'd never wanted to help glue something back together so much before. And her heart hurt. But she looked a little closer and she realized all those broken pieces were just pieces of a puzzle waiting for someone to take the time to put them together. Some of them had broken and torn edges, and some hardly resembled pieces at all. But even through her tears she was struck by its picture. And humbled by its grace. She realized that those imperfections were what made it so beautiful to her. She realized that this gift was a lot like her Daddy. Hard for her mind to understand but impossible for her heart not to embrace. She took a deep breath and looked up at her Daddy. "Can we do this together?" she asked. He caught her gaze and nodded, knowing that this puzzle wasn't going to be put together overnight. "That's ok," she whispers, "As long as You're with me, I've got a million breaths left to share." She held out her hand and he lifted her up. Together they leaned down and picked up all the pieces one by one. She may not be the little girl she once was, but she still knows she didn't want to do anything without her Daddy. She knew deep deep down that this was the gift she'd prayed for and wished on, for as long as she could remember. She guessed in some strange way, she'd known all along. As she fit the first of a million pieces together she smiled. And her Daddy smiled. And with each piece she picked up, she asked her Daddy for help. And she prayed deep deep down in her heart that she'd get to see the picture all together in the end. And deep deep down in the corner of her heart she felt something she'd never really felt before. And she knew she'd never be the same again.