Believe it or not, even Dallas, Texas can get snowed-in. And when it snows in Dallas, we aren't really sure what to do.
Due to the snow, we decided to cancel our regular Kids Club at Willow Pond. I was talking to Rickey on the phone about closing the Kids Club when I started getting phone calls from a number I didn't recognize. I ignored the calls. Rickey let me know the phone calls were from a girl in our Kids Club who thought she could talk me in to opening up for the day. She had already tried (and failed) to talk Rickey in to doing so.
I decided to text her back and let her know why we were not open. When she responded, I noticed the signature at the bottom of her text, which included her nick name: "Gutter Girl." My heart was broken.
This girl is a true work in progress and someone I love dearly. We have been talking about the story of Queen Esther from the Bible with her: the type of woman Queen Esther was, and how we as women are called to be who God created us to be. My friend wanted to know more about Queen Esther, so she started to read the story on her own. We encouraged her in this, praying that she would see herself as the precious child of God that we see, and eventually nicknamed her Queen Esther!
After a few texts back and forth with my friend, I wrote, "Do me a favor and change "Gutter Girl" to "Queen Esther."
She responded, "That's what Mr. Rickey is telling me to do."
I responded, "Those that love you tell you the truth. The truth came from two different people at two different times. I had no idea that Mr. Rickey told you to change it. If my son had "Gutter Boy" at the end of his texts, it would break my heart. He is my Prince, not a child from the gutter."
After about 30 minutes, she wrote, "Ooookay." But, she had simply changed the signature to include a new nickname: "Gutter Person."
I immediately responded, "So you will change it? Now? Send me a text after you change it, okay?"
About twenty minutes later, she responded with: "qUEen EstHEr."
I'll take that!
-- Jayda Ekundayo
