Lost and Found...

Hello my blogland framily!!!  I hope you've all had a wonderful week! 

Last week went by and found me dealing with a blood pressure flare up.  Let me give you background:  I've always had low blood pressure; never higher than 116/65-70.  One Saturday in November 2014 found me not feeling well and I had no idea what was wrong.  I talked to my sister, who's a nurse, and she suggested (strongly) that I go have my blood pressure checked.  I finally found somewhere to have it checked and it was super high (that was right in the midst of some personal life drama), ended up in urgent care, had a follow-up doctor's appointment and ended up on a low dose of meds for 4 months.  Had full bloodwork done - nothing.  It went back to a (new) normal, then it flared back up again in December 2015.  I had an EKG and a stress test at that time and all was well with my heart. Fast forward to last Monday and I started not feeling well, took my blood pressure and it was up. I left early to get some rest.  Tuesday it was good, but Wednesday I was feeling terrible again, and when I got home and took my pressure, the bottom number was up to 96 and was rising!  (*sidebar* I sound like somebody's Big Momma, talking about "my pressure," lol!)  I drank some NASTY apple cider vinegar water and it went down enough for me to sleep.  The next morning, it was right back up, the bottom number got up to 100 and my doctor told me to come in immediately.  Long story short, I'm back on meds again, for a few months, then another round of bloodwork to come so we can try and find out what the cause is.  All that to say, you all keep me in your prayers; not feeling this full scale revolution thing that is happening with this over 40 body of mine!!!  

Onto the subject of my post- as you know, this past Sunday was Father's Day.  At first, I wasn't gonna be able to hang out with my dad because his schedule was chock full.  So I was a little disappointed, although I didn't tell him that, but I said ok.  I sent him a Father's Day text early in the morning before I started getting ready for church and he called to say that he thought about it and he was going to make the time to hang out with me. Yay!  See, the thing is, I'm thinking I'm kind of a daddy's girl...

I was not fortunate enough to have my parents growing up, due to grown up drama that had nothing really to do with me.  As a result, I didn't have a "daddy" per se (I've stated before that I lived with my grandparents from the age of 8 until I got married and moved out when I was 23).  I struggled with not having my parents, despite having very loving grandparents.  I had a very tenuous relationship with my parents; I didn't really have a relationship with either of them until I was an adult.  Then it was almost like tug of war between them for awhile, which kinda sucked!  When I had my kids, I sat both of them down and asked them to just be the best grandparents they could be.  And you know what?  To their credit, they have been AWESOME!!! My mom, "Little Grandma," and my dad, "Grandpa-pa," have surpassed my wildest dreams - they love my kids and my kids love them.  Awesome sauce! 

I took my first photo with both of my parents in 2006... I was almost 35.  Let that marinate. Anyway, fast forward to 2010 when my grandmother was sick, hospitalized and later died.  I ended up spending a lot of time with my mother and a shift happened in our relationship.Slowly, but surely, she began to fill the void left by my grandmother.  She can't replace grandma, but she has definitely been my mom when I needed her to be.  And for that, I am forever grateful...

But this post is about my dad.  So my parents were young when I was born and it was pretty scandalous in the early 70s for young, unwed, church folks to end up pregnant.  There was a lot of drama going on at that time and unfortunately, I lost my dad in the process.  That had a lot of repercussions, (which are not the subject of this post), but I always wanted and NEEDED my dad.  Over the years, I reached out several times and would "catch and release." When I really grew up, I reached out again, and we both decided to try this thing again.  And you know what?  We haven't looked back since that day!  Now, sometimes things are a little wonky because we're not used to being there (ie. - he's not used to having a daughter and I'm not used to having a dad), but we are working on it. 

I've learned (scratch that, still learning) that I still need him, even though I'm 45 and have my own kids, I still need my daddy.  Only daddies can have righteous indignation when someone does their daughters wrong!  Only daddies still want to protect their "baby girl" when she is hurting.  Only daddies (and mommies) can feel the anguish of not being able to help when they know their child is in trouble.  Only daddies can make their daughter feel like a princess when he gives her unexpected gifts, takes her out for dinner, bakes her red velvet cake and sweet potato pie on request, makes paella, does tequila shots with her for her birthday, and honors her requests for selfies (even when you hate the way you look in pictures because you know that she scrapbooks and pictures are important to her)- - - wait, maybe that's just MY DADDY!  And we've made a commitment to getting together at least once a month (last month for birthday dinner, and this month for Father's Day lunch).  All of that is a good thing and I've been loving the extra time with my dad.  And I'm loving that we've been able more and more to have one-on-one time to just be.  And you know what? I've learned that my dad kinda needs me too... (but that's not the subject of this post either).

Scripture tells the parable of the prodigal son over in Luke 15:11-32.  If you're not familiar, here's a recap:  a father has two sons, the youngest of which asks for his inheritance early. the father gives it to him, and he runs off and spends it wastefully, ends up in a famine, all before deciding to go home, beg for forgiveness and ask his father if he can be one of the hired servants.  Instead, his father sees him on the road, welcomes him back and prepares a feast for him, including a fat calf that was generally reserved for special occasions.  The older son refused to participate, noting that he had never disobeyed his father or left and he had never had so much as a goat prepared for him and his friends!  The father reminded the older son that everything he had would belong to him but that they should still celebrate the return of the younger son, because he was lost and is now found.  This parable is the last of Jesus' parables on loss and redemption, about how the Father always welcomes home his lost sheep.

So why on earth did I choose this passage of scripture?  Well, as usual I thought I was writing about one thing and was led to go in a completely different direction!!!  This post was (so I thought) going to be about me and how I'm a new-fangled, 45-year old daddy's girl. But He had other ideas apparently!  What it's all about is lost and found.

Yep, that's right.  Lost and found.  Like my regular blood pressure.  LIke my parents, specifically like my daddy.  And yes, I am 45 and I call him "daddy" not "dad."  But more so like when we leave from under the covering of our Heavenly Father and He always welcomes us back with open arms.  Jesus compares Himself to a shepherd and we believers are His sheep.  John 10:11 says that the "good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep."  That is exactly what Christ did for us when he lay down his life for us on Calvary. He's always standing there with open arms ready to welcome us to Him, when we repent and accept Him.  And just like my daddy wants to be my helper, protector and treat me like a princess, so does our Heavenly Father want to do the same for us.  If we just return to Him, like the prodigal son returned to his father.

So all that to say - I'm a certified Daddy's Girl, both for my earthly Father and my Heavenly Father.  Just as I thank God for being returned to my earthly father, I also thank God for being returned to Him, because I was one of his lost sheep.  And that, is very good news!!!

So framily, have a great weekend and if you have strayed from the flock, consider going to church this Sunday and returning.  He's waiting for you!!!

Don't forget to Holla @ Darvi and be blessed! xoxoxo

P.S. - Here's some pics of me and my daddy, from my birthday dinner and Father's Day!