The Sweetest Sound

Yesterday I heard the sweetest sound. It was Eliana saying, "I love you." It wasn't clear as a bell, it wasn't the most perfect pronunciation, but it was unmistakable. My daughter turned around as she sat in my lap, she kissed my lips and then said, "I love you." She meant to say it, she wanted to express what she was feeling at the time and she did it.
The thing that makes it so tender for me is that I have been able to give this 17 month old child the desire to articulate such a feeling. It makes me feel absolutely wonderful about the job I am doing as a parent that my baby so completely understands the concept of love and is able to convey it to others. Her world is so full of love that it naturally flows from her to those around her. There aren't a lot of things for which I feel comfortable taking credit. I will happily claim this as my own triumph of parenting. I justify this with the assumption that were my daughter not exposed to true loving care on a daily basis, in fact completely enveloped in love at every moment, she would not have the capacity to understand, let alone express, love. After all, how can one understand the unknown?
This morning I was treated to a shower of I love you's. I'd be lying if I denied being intoxicated by it. The very idea of it makes me weak in the knees. Hearing Eliana say those words is on par with hearing Alan say those words to me for the first time. The impact on my heart is incalculable, I cannot quantify the feeling, I cannot adequately describe it. Suffice to say that this will be a day I'll long remember and cherish. This is one of the days when being a mommy feels very good.