I’ve sewn my last seam, ripped my last mistake and positioned my last bead. When Victoria was invited to the prom, I knew that somehow, somewhere, she would find a dress. I even jokingly said that I’d make one for her. I really was joking.

Then it happened. We were in the second dress shop, trying on the fifth dress, when she said, “I’d like you to make one something like this one, in another color, with a different bow.”

“Can’t we just order this one in another color?” I asked while searching for the price tag.

The owner of the shop quickly rounded the corner and chimed in, “If you buy this dress, I’ll take off 10 percent.”

I forced myself to swallow a scream. My math skills may be

meager, but they are sufficient to subtract $49 from a $498, and leave me with a number that was not

within the budget. (To be honest, I never finished the subtraction problem, and I wasn’t sure what the budget was, but this dress was out of it.)

Before I could say, “I’m really nervous about sewing a prom dress,” Lauren, Victoria and I were in the fabric shop. They quickly found a pattern and debated only a few minutes

over the fabric. I can do this, I thought, I can sew this dress. While I headed toward the register, Victoria took one more step in the direction of her dream dress with words which caused me to stop in my tracks, “Mom, can you bead the top?”

“I’ve never beaded anything. I can’t do this. I can’t bead this dress.”

“Sure you can and I’ll help. We’ll learn together. I’ll work on it every day after school.”

What she probably meant to say was, “You can work on the dress every day. Then one day after school, cheerleading practice, eating with friends and homework, I will watch you sew one bead.” That’s what happened. She sat next to me for less than a minute, stood and said, “Wow, that’s a lot of work,” then left the room.

As she walked away, I looked back at the dress that was being transformed by tiny beads that lit up against the emerald bodice. Victoria’s vision was becoming

reality because she trusted that I could do something that I had never done before to give her something that previously existed only in her mind.

My prayer throughout this project has also undergone transformation. What began as a desperate plea, God, help me to make this, has changed into a prayer not just for Victoria, but for your children, too.

May our children’s dreams sparkle against the fabric of their futures. May the confidence that they have in us be magnified and placed in God, the giver of dreams, and the One Who will provide

them with the means to bring

their visions to reality. And may God do something so wonderful with their lives that only He can get the glory.

Ronny may be reached at rmichel@rtconline.com.