I am a mother who knows my child.

This is a story I wrote for Mille, my 5 year old who, since a baby, has struggled with learning and developing skills that come easy to most of us.

Seven Gifts

When Mille was sent from Heaven to Earth, her Heavenly Father gave her several gifts.  He carefully chose these gifts to help her on her journey so that she would be able to return to him.  He loved her very much, but she could only return to live with Him, if she learned how to, and chose to live like Him.  Otherwise she would not be happy and comfortable in His home.

The first two gifts he gave her were given to every child He sent to Earth. 

The first gift was Agency.  This gift would give Mille the freedom to choose everything she did in this life.  She could choose to be kind or to hurt others, to share or to keep things all to herself.  She could choose to obey or to disobey.  She could choose to be honest or to tell a lie.  She could choose to work hard or to just play.  She could choose to try, and try again or to quit when something was hard.  She could choose to learn or to ignore.

The second gift was His son, Jesus.  Jesus showed the path back to Heavenly Father and he Atoned for Mille’s sins and pain and weakness. This means he paid the penalty for her sins, and felt all her sorrow, and hurt.  Because He was perfect and the physical son of Heavenly Father this was His mission, and only He could do it.

The other gifts He gave her were unique to Mille.  Four gifts came in beautiful shining packages.  Mille was thrilled to hold each of them.  They made her warm and joyful and excited as she looked at and explored them.

Three was the gift of a beautiful, healthy body.  Mille had yellow-gold hair, blue eyes that sparkled when she giggled, which she did a lot. A button nose and a tear-drop shaped face.  Her frame was small and dainty. She had perfect posture and amazing flexibility.

The fourth gift was Music.  Mille loved music and dancing.  She learned to sing the song “I am a Child of God” long before she spoke her first sentence.  She often sang and danced as she went about her day.

The fifth gift was Joy.  Mille felt excitement over so many things.  She loved the animals, and flowers.  She loved the flavor and texture of foods.  She would light up and give hugs when she saw people she loved… and to complete strangers.  She loved holidays, especially “Happy Days” as she called birthdays.  On her calendar, time was measured by holidays.

The sixth gift was Love of Family.  Mille loved families, more than most, especially mothers and babies.  She would watch family movies on the computer and look at family pictures in albums.  She would play house to practice being a mother.  She would often ask other people about their children, and she would talk about the husband and children she would have when she grew up. 

Mille’s last gift was different.  It was not bright and shiny like her other gifts.  It was wrapped in ordinary, plain brown paper.  It was very heavy, too heavy for her to carry alone.  Mille wasn’t sure she really wanted this gift.  But Heavenly Father assured her that this gift was her most important gift to help her return to Him.  This was her gift that would teach her how to live as Jesus did.  It would be the gift that would prepare her to live with Him again. 

This seventh gift was a Trial.  It was a different wiring in her brain that made it harder for her to learn things.

When other children crawled at 8 months, it took Mille until 12 months.  When other children walked at 12 months, it took Mille until 20 months.  When other children could talk in sentences at 2 years, it took Mille until she was 3 ¾ years.  She had to be told the names of things like colors, and animals, and food, and toys 20 or 30 or 50 times before her brain could remember them.  It was hard for her to say what she needed and wanted and sometimes this was very frustrating.

When other children played a game, Mille was sometimes lost.  She did not understand how to play, or her body struggled to do the movements and keep up, or her brain could not form the words.  Then she would be left out and her feeling would hurt.

She couldn’t always tell when her body needed to go to the bathroom.  Sometimes that was very embarrassing.

Heavenly Father promised Mille other gifts to come as she needed them.  If she would pray and ask for a gift and work hard for it, He would send her every gift she may need or want that would help her return Home.  He loved her, and wanted to help her return.

Because Mille’s seventh gift was too heavy to carry alone.  Her father and mother and sisters and brother all helped Mille carry it at times.  Other people also came into Mille's life and helped her carry her heavy gift.  In return Mille shared her other gifts with them.