Blog 3562 – 08.05.2025

The Greatest Gift of Life

Today is my granddaughter Emma Grace’s second birthday, a big important day indeed. I am reminded of one of my favorite love songs that says, “Once in a while along the way, love’s been good to me. There was a girl…” five days from today my lovely and loving wife Linda Lee and I will celebrate our thirty-sixth wedding anniversary. Though I was her first husband, we were neither of us the other’s first love nor first lover. Still we are both romantics believing the last line of yesterday’s song, All That We Let In, that “The greatest gift of life is to know love.”

Linda loves to put jig saw puzzles together so I am always on the look out for one (new or used) that she might like. I found three at Walmart for her that I got her for her recent birthday. Yesterday she finished the first of those three. The title of the puzzle per the box is Always and Forever, a beautiful sentiment in English, French, or Spanish.

I am glad and grateful for every love that I have ever known first and last, most especially for the one that did not get away and the new little girl in our lives for whom we are both most glad and grateful, Emma Grace White. This is her on her first birthday a year ago today. Granny and Poppa White are expecting a new birthday picture of our princess today.

Your friend, fellow traveler, and romantic poet,

David James White

Emma Grace

There was a girl in Houston

Born in the summer heat

Her eyes so very lovely

Her smile so very sweet

Her laugh dispels the storm clouds

Her tears make the flowers bloom

My heart has grown three sizes

For this girl to make more room.