Dear Hazel,




You were newly introduced to this crazy world, on January 15, 2013. Right now you are only three months old. Those three months went by quickly; that’s how life is. You have giant dark blue eyes, which I suspect are going to turn green. Your cheeks are very chubby and make it almost impossible for you not to drool. You have fuzzy, dark hair and your skin is perfectly pink. You have recently learned to smile. When you do smile you have adorable dimples on both of your chubby cheeks. You are already a happy girl, you hardly cry and you’re content with almost anyone who holds you.
There are so many memories ahead for you. Many friends will come into your life, and many will leave. You’ll experience heartbreak, fighting with your parents, and seeing bad events happen to good people. Life does have struggles. Sometimes you won’t find any reason to smile. I am here to teach you though, how wonderful life is. I am here to give you little reasons to smile.

Hazel, I can’t stress enough the importance of giving your trust entirely to God. God is all good. He created you to be happy. He created you to love him and love all of his people. Never underestimate the power of his love. You will grow to learn how much love our family has. With that, you will also learn how much love our family has for God. God created our crazy, wonderful family. He put us all together to love him, to serve him, and to trust him. Somebody once anonymously said, “When life knocks you down to your knees, just remember, you’re in the perfect position to pray.” God is always with us when we need him most.

Another important piece of advice I have for you is to treat everyone with absolute respect. Love everyone. Put yourself in their shoes and think of how they will feel after what you say. Listen to others when they need help. Help them. Life can be so much easier when you love everyone. People will respect you when you can respect others. Sometimes respecting will be hard. You may see others disrespecting one person, you’ll wonder how you will be treated if you don’t bully that person. You never know though. You could be changing somebody’s life. The world can always use more love. Why not be the person to spread that love? You will love yourself, the more you can love others. Love is the most powerful grace to have. Sometimes it is hard to remember why you love people or even how to love people. But I pray for you every day that the Lord can help you love. I pray that God can love people through your heart.

The last piece of advice I can give you is to be yourself. You will never live someone else’s life. You are you, and that is perfect. Don’t try to be just like everyone else, the world needs a variety of people. If everyone was the same, the world couldn’t function. Sometimes you may be jealous. You may feel like everyone else has a better life than you. Don’t ever forget how good life is. You only have one shot at life. Don’t waste your time being someone you’re not. When you can love who you are and accept the life that was given to you, your life is going to be the one making others jealous.

Now I am going to do as I promised and give you little reasons to smile. What makes me smile more than anything is our family. You were born into possibly one of the craziest, loudest, most chaotic families in the world. Our family is big. Without a doubt though, our family loves each other dearly. We support each other when making good decisions and when you make a bad decision, our family will certainly let you know. At times you may feel like it’s hard to have your own opinion. You can though. Our family will always respect your opinions and love you for them. Families are the best because you don’t have to impress them. We know exactly who you are, and we love you for yourself. If you ever have a problem Hazel, don’t ever question if your family wants to help. We want to see you happy. We will always be here for you. You will experience some very good memories in this family.

The second biggest reason to smile is hearing the words “I love you.” Those three words have so much power behind them. To know that you are loved is the best feeling in the world. Know that I do love you and your family loves you. When you grow up, the people you become friends with are going to love you. To know that you are loved, means you don’t feel alone. You will always have your loved ones to talk to. Don’t be afraid to love others or to let people love you. Some people shut others out when they are going through hard times, don’t do that. Let people tell you how much they love you.

The third reason I can give you to smile, is your friends. Having friends is a wonderful blessing. Out of all the people you will meet, I promise one of them will become your best friend. You will find a friend that will stick by your side, through thick and through thin. You are going to experience your best memories with this person. You’ll have sleepovers, tell secrets, share inside jokes, and form a wonderful bond of trust. Never take your best friend for granted, because they are the people that are going to make your life unique. Everyone deserves a best friend. Everyone deserves someone that they feel completely themselves around. Your best friend is going to make you smile, and more importantly, your best friend is going to make you love life.

The next best thing about life is laughing. Be proud of your laugh. Don’t ever be embarrassed when you see humor in a situation. Life is so much more exciting when you can laugh. Your laugh will also become contagious. When others around you hear your laugh, they will suddenly become more joyous. A day spent laughing turns into a good day. Many days spent laughing turns into a good month. Months spent laughing will become a good year, and laughing for years will become a great life. When you feel sad, just remember a time that made you laugh. Laughing truly is the best medicine and a big reason to smile.

The last little reason I have for you to smile is to know your passion. We all have our own passions in life. Having a hobby that you are passionate about is very important. Find something that you love to do, that makes you smile. Find something that you are good at and want to strive to get better at. Maybe it will be music, or a sport, or an art. Whatever it is, it is something to be thankful for, something that should make you smile.

There is so much more to life than what I have written in this letter. Most of life can’t be explained or predicted. You will have to figure some of this out first hand, but I hope that this can help you appreciate life, and love the world you were born into. I don’t really know you yet. You are still a little baby, but that doesn’t mean I don’t love you so very much. I do. I love you a lot Hazel, and I hope that you can use this advice in life. I hope that you can apply it to the world. You are a wonderful baby girl, and I can’t wait to watch you grow up and find your own little reasons to smile.


Love, Aunty Bella