Ella’s Night Lights

Ella is a tiny girl that lives in the nook of an old oak tree. Like a moth, she has two antennae and feathery wings. At night she collects light from all that glows and shares the light with those needing help finding their way in the dark. Ella’s biggest wish is to see the sunrise. And so begins Ella’s story.

My friend, Katherine, purchased this children’s book before I even started thinking about my 60th birthday. The beautiful illustrations and themes of giving, friendship, and the light within each of us made Ella’s Night Lights by Lucy Fleming a perfect gift for her new granddaughter. Some time later my request to make someone’s day with $60 arrived. Ella came to mind, and as if by divine intervention the rest of the plan fell into place.

Books and children are important to Katherine, but also, she wanted to keep the money in her community. Four copies of Ella’s Night Lights were ordered from her local bookstore, Forever Books in St. Joseph, MI. The books were individually wrapped, like birthday gifts, and presented to the Nurse Family Partnership program sponsored by Berrien County Health Department. The program supports approximately 100 first time mothers in Berrien County from pregnancy through a child’s 2nd birthday and even includes a focus on early childhood literacy.

I’ve learned so many things from my $60 Birthday Project, but one is that the energy of the project is lasting for both myself and the people I asked to participate. Katherine’s birthday was a few months after mine and in this spirit of giving she decided that every year for HER birthday she would donate to childhood literacy. On the advice of the Berrien County program director, Katherine selected Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, a non-profit organization dedicated to inspiring a love of reading. Once a month and at no cost to the family, the organization mails a high quality, age appropriate book through the age of 5 to all registered children. For this first birthday donation Katherine sponsored one child in Southwest Michigan, providing one book per month for 36 months.

The title page of Ella’s Night Lights includes a dedication:

To every single person who makes the world a brighter place

Yes, this includes me. But this also includes the 60 people who participated in my birthday project. And every person who I may or may not know of, who did something on their own after hearing about this project. Or who plan on doing something in the future. The woman who I read about in my local paper who inspired me and all the people who participated in her 70th Birthday Project.

As I wrote this blog, a text from Katherine arrived. She had been sitting on a bench at the edge of a pond while two Eagles floated above looking for fish. A palm tree with a lattice-like trunk caught her eye. She admired how the bottom pieces fell away as the palm grew, and as she studied this detail working from bottom to top, something caught her eye. A $20 bill. Intentionally tucked into one of the lattice pieces.

The list of people who make the world brighter is endless. We just don’t hear about them. This is why I’m sharing these stories.

To all of you out there shining your light, I say thank you.