It's the Tiny Things - The Anatomical Heart

Always look for the signs from the universe ✨

Twelve hours after my daughter was born, they took her away from us. About seven hours later, a young doctor walked into my hospital room and said, “I have devastating news for you.”

Then he told us a chamber of her heart was missing.

And then he left.

It was Memorial Day weekend, and no specialists were there. So we waited.

My husband and I curled into one another in my tiny hospital bed while nurses came in through the night to take my vitals and encourage me to start pumping milk for a baby I wasn’t sure I would ever get to feed.

The first surgery took far too long because of complications. The second landed on Christmas before she was even a year old. By the third surgery, she was considered very high risk, and we had to search for a doctor willing to do it.

It taught me how to live inside a single day. No future. No past. Just this moment.

I suppose that is where Tiny Things was first born.

Day by day. Moment by moment.

And somehow, in the middle of all that fear, there lived the best moments of my life.

This month, my daughter turns 17.

She designs clothing out of trash and thrift-store finds to help the environment. She dreams of going to fashion school after graduation. Recently, I looked up Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising — one of the big fashion programs here in Los Angeles – and discovered they were hosting their graduate fashion show in May. It turns out anyone can attend.

The whole thing looked like Project Runway. Rows of white chairs lined the park. Professional models walked the students’ collections beneath the city lights.

We found our seats. The music began. The first collection stepped onto the runway.

And the very first look to turn the corner was this.

A giant anatomical heart suspended in the center of the dress.

The second it passed me, hot tears began falling uncontrollably down my face.

At the time, I couldn’t even explain why.

But that anatomical heart slayed me.

The surgeries.
The fear.
The hospital rooms.
The waiting.
The uncertainty of those early years.

And now here she was – sitting beside me.
Dreaming.
Taking photos.
Talking about her next project.

It felt like a little sign.
A tiny wink from the universe.

We made it.

Until Next Time 🌙 ✨
Kim

P.S. Please leave your Tiny Things below and spread delight to all of us who love to read them.

P.S.S. As I was writing this, I remembered one of the outrageous “fits” (as the kids call it today) that my daughter put together when she was only 2. Remember to always look back at yourself as a child. You will find what you truly love.