Isn't She Lovely

Four years ago, I started working with the high school students at my church. Like a freshman, I was awkward, unsure who to sit with and how to initiate a conversation with the students around me. My first year, I kept a pretty low profile, but as time passed and I spent more time with the students, I began to feel like part of the crowd. Now I enter the room with the swagger of a senior.

As a high school student myself, I had many friends and participated in a variety of activities. Reflecting on those days, though, I remember being insecure and immature and always somewhere just short of fitting in. The high school girls I work with now will probably describe themselves the same way in 20 years, but to my eyes, they are wise beyond their years and in many ways, stunningly beautiful.



Anna is the tenacious athlete. Yesterday I watched her learning to wakeboard behind a boat, face scrunched in determination, hands thrown up in frustration, leg muscles impressively bulging when she finally caught on. Inside her athletic frame beats a leader’s heart. She corrals the high school students into Nerf wars and birthday pranks.

Allison is a gifted musician, always singing something from Broadway or Glee. She disappears on Sunday nights to play the piano. When she speaks, she is hilarious. Dark and dry, her sense of humor betrays an old soul hiding in a teenage body.

Hannah is usually harmonizing with Allison. She, too, is always singing. I knew that if I wanted her to stay awake on the car ride home from the lake last night, all I had to do was put on some music she could sing along to. Tall and lovely, she is a natural in the spotlight, never scared to be goofy in a skit.

Marlena has the beauty of an Italian move star and the manners of English royalty. Always polite, always kind, she surprised us all by enlisting in the Marines after high school. She knows you have to work hard for what you want, so if getting to college means going through boot camp first, she will get to the end of the obstacle course.

Karen has learned to wait for things: a car, a cell phone, a laptop. Delayed gratification has made her more appreciative than her high school peers. God is using her to bring light to the restaurant where she works and soon He will send her into the mountains of western North Carolina to be a light on her college campus. There is no doubt she will be successful there because, in addition to being a good student, Karen is able to fit in with any group of people.

Claire is the all-American girl. Blonde and lovely, she is always busy with sports and clubs and friends. But she is no stereotype. Claire is a nurturing older sister and a devoted friend.

Kelly is the girl people flock to. She too is a busy athlete with many friends. Instead of letting popularity go to her head, Kelly steps back and trusts her parents’ advice. Her heart is tender. When she went to Africa, her mother’s greatest fear was not snakes or malaria, but that Kelly would become too attached to the orphans she worked with.

Alice is the thinker, the reader and the grown-up of the bunch. Tall and delicate, she carries herself with grace and maturity beyond her years. She enjoyed high school, but I get the feeling that Alice will really love the deep conversations and rousing discussions that await her at college this fall.

Abby is the fairy princess. Ethereal and silly, she can also be surprisingly grounded. Talk to her about the severe car accident that left her hospitalized for weeks and you will hear the voice of a godly, mature young woman. Talk to her about Mr. Darcy and you will meet a very funny girl.