A Happy Life

                 To live with purpose,
                 To say the courageous thing,
                 To celebrate the simple gift,
                 To follow your dreams.
                 This is a happy life.
                                  -Wayland Henry

This was the quote on the front cover of one of the most moving birthday cards I have ever received, given to me tonight in one of the most peculiar and wonderful ways by a completely anonymous person.

So tomorrow is my 31st birthday. Normally, I love birthdays and look forward to mine starting the day after Christmas. But there was something about this year that was the first time I was actually quite dreading it. Sure, nobody loves turning older (unless you're 6). But that wasn't it really. This would be the first year I turned older without my dad singing me a birthday tune in his pavorotti voice at an insane hour in the morning. It was like I was moving on, growing older without him and it left me with a lump in my throat everytime I thought about it.

Of course it's also February, which meant the car registration and a renewal on my license and just like that... boom.... no money to even celebrate with. It was looking kind of grim and I spent the entire week in prayer about it. I prayed for peace about it, I prayed for God's provision financially, using a specific sum (that was seriously like asking for a million dollars). But I also prayed that in some way, with my earthly daddy not here to tell me he loved me, that God himself would tell me. That I would just know that He loved me, and that He was with me. And one night he distinctly said, "Erin... be still and know that I am God."

So, I was still. I prayed, and I cried and I praised Him and I watched as the days slowly drifted towards my birthday. Tonight, my family decided to leave our home around 7pm. We packed ourselves in the car and took off. About 15 minutes into our ride, I saw a strange phone number calling me. I didn't recognize it and thought it might be a person from Craigslist, so I let it go to voicemail. When I checked the message, it was a man (disguising his voice) telling me that there was a package on my front porch. Now, I don't know about you, but usually when someone tells you that, you start to think about bombs and terrorists. But I also thought that it was the night before my birthday so maybe, just maybe it actually WAS a package?

We came home later that evening and went to the front porch to check. Sure enough there was a small Anthropologie gift bag. I opened up the nicely ordained giftbag to find a sealed card. It was a beautiful card really, with the most amazing poem. It spoke right to the heart of me, like those words were God speaking. And inside the card there were no written words at all and only a Happy Birthday printed on the inside. And there it sat, the EXACT amount of money I had prayed for this month.

I bawled, I sobbed, I ugly cried and I thanked God. How could this person have even known it was my birthday? How could they have known that I wouldn't, I couldn't possibly accept money from someone I knew? But mostly, how could they know that right then, that night what I really and truly needed to know, was that I was loved? Really loved?

Dear "Anthropologie" I'm calling you that because I have no other name to call you. I have no idea who you are, and I know you went to great lengths to keep it that way. But I just wanted you to know that I have never felt so entirely loved by a stranger before in my life. I so appreciated your words to me, your encouragement, and your support. I felt them. And I felt God through them. I could literally feel that big God bear hug I was so longing for on my birthday. I wish there was a way for you to know just how much that meant to me. And so, this is the only way I know how to tell you thank you. I hope you read this, and that everyone who does read this knows that once again, God is CRAZY CRAZY just so very CRAZY AMAZING. I've said it before, and I will say it to the end of my days. Thank you Anthropologie, for making this one of the most amazing birthdays of my life.
Yours, ever so sincerely,
Erin