Amen

On the wall in the guest bedroom of my grandmother's house there used to be a wooden plaque with a prayer. As a kid I memorized that prayer. I loved its rhyme and the images it conjured. It wasn't scary like Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep or formidable like the Lord's Prayer.

When my kids were little I used to sing it to them - conveniently enough it had the exact same tune of a popular Uncle Kracker song - and when they were old enough to say prayers, I would say a verse and they would repeat it.

But recently Abby started insisting on her own prayers. Just like my method she says a "verse" and I repeat it. Her prayers are typically sweet and weird and funny. Thanks to her, unicorns and rainbows and princesses go to bed each night fully blessed.

Last night after thanking God for her friends and brothers and the stars and flowers, she closed with "Keep the earth safe and keep my doors closed. Amen."