A Melody Close to Home

The first time Rachel held her baby sister Mia, her heart overflowed with love. She stared in awe at the tiny bundle wrapped in a pink blanket, a few soft curls framing her round little face. Mia looked back at her and smiled.

"She looks like a baby doll!" Rachel said to her mother as she puckered her lips to kiss her little sister on the cheek.

"Be careful Rachel," her mother warned, holding her hands underneath Rachel's arms for additional support.

"Okay," Rachel replied. "Mommy, can I sing her a song?"

Rachel's mother was taken aback by her daughter's request, as Rachel was so shy that she never sang when she thought someone might hear her. On this particular occasion, the entire family was present to celebrate the homecoming of baby Mia.

"Go ahead Sweetheart," Rachel's mother answered.

"Don't sing! Your voice might crack a window!" Rachel's 12-year-old brother Aaron joked. Their 10-year-old twin brothers, Kenny and Kyle, began to laugh.

"You won't be laughing in a minute!" the boys' father threatened as he gave his sons the evil eye. They quickly put on their best poker faces, knowing that Dad was one who meant what he said.

"Go ahead Precious," Rachel's father encouraged.

Rachel shut everyone out except for her little sister and began to sing, albeit a tad off key:

You are my baby doll sister
I am your big, big sister
I'm gonna be there for you
You love me and I love you too

You are my baby doll sister...

Rachel's mother shed a tear while her father beamed with pride. Like helium ballons being pumped full of air, her three older brothers' cheeks puffed out as they tried to hold in their laughter.

But Rachel only noticed Mia, whose dark brown, almond-shaped eyes grew wide at the sound of her big sister's voice. Mia began to move her lips as if she wanted to sing along.

Suddenly, the family dog Benny, who was also in the room, began to howl. Rachel's brothers couldn't hold it in any longer - they all fell to the floor, rolling around and laughing so hard their stomachs began to hurt. Even Rachel's mother and father began to snicker.

"You suck!" Kyle teased his sister as the other brothers continued to laugh.

"That's enough!" their father said, his tone growing serious once again.

Embarrassed, Rachel blushed and handed Mia back to her mother. Without saying a word, she turned away, plopped down on the floor in front of the living room television and with her back to everyone, pretended to be immersed in TV.

As Rachel's father ordered the boys to their rooms, baby Mia began to cry.

"She must be hungry," Rachel's mother said, quickly preparing to nurse her baby daughter. But her efforts to nurse her baby were rejected; Mia only cried louder.

"Well her diaper is not soiled," the mother remarked, conducting a spot check while cradling her tiny daughter in her arms. "She's probably just sleepy."

But the more the mother attempted to sooth her baby, the tighter Mia clenched her little fists and the redder her face became as her wails grew louder.

"Well maybe our little American Idol needs to sing her sister another song," the father playfully noted. "Rachel, come here. I think Mia wants you to sing to her. Don't worry about your knuckle-head brothers - Alvin and the Chipmunks - they will be in their rooms for the rest of the evening."

Without looking at her parents, Rachel softly replied, "I can't sing. Even Benny thinks I can't sing."

Hoping that her husband was onto something, Rachel's mother stated, "Rachel, Benny was singing with you. He only did that because he likes your voice."

"But everybody laughed at me," Rachel said, folding her arms in frustration and pouting, her back still to her parents.

"Pretty please?" the father asked his oldest daughter. "You know you're my Precious Angel and I think you have a beautiful voice. We were only laughing because Benny surprised us by howling, but your mother's right - he was singing along with you."

Her back still to her parents, Rachel unfolded her arms and began singing her 'Baby Doll Sister' song softly as she fidgeted with her shoes. Benny chimed in once again, but this time Rachel told herself that her parents were right - he was singing with her. "At least he likes my singing," she thought to herself.

Rachel was so self-conscious about her voice that she didn't even notice her baby sister had stopped crying until a couple of minutes had passed. When she finally did turn around, she noticed that Mia was resting peacefully in her mother's arms.

"You are our hero!" Rachel's father told her. "You saved the day! Mia stopped crying and it was all because of you."

"Thanks Baby," her mother added, "Mia really seems to love to hear you sing. Maybe you should sing to her a little each day. It makes her smile."

From then on, each day for the first year of her life, Mia's big sister Rachel sang the 'Baby Doll Sister' song to her every night. And each time, Mia smiled.

Always remember:

To someone, your voice is a melody; never underestimate its power or value.

To someone, you are an inspiration - maybe even a hero.

Even when you think you don't matter, there is someone to whom you mean everything.

Keep talking, singing, writing, creating. Your best may not mean much to everyone, but it may make a world of difference to someone.