The story behind the Angel's Smile...

I wanted to share this with you all. It was a gift given to us the day of Jaiden's private service. My neighbor Joelle wrote the story. It tells how the image of Jaiden's Angel was created.

We will treasure it forever, and it makes me believe that Jaiden tuly was on earth; and always wil be, an Angel from above.

To the Tlapa family and for Jaiden,
Our dear friend and angel
With all of our love,Joelle, Don and Addison

Dear Holleigh and Paul:

Jaiden, Aspen, Mary and Addison created this beautifulmural on one of our picture windows with glass crayons.
It is a work of art that we admire every day. I’ve been wanting to share it with you and wasn’t quite sure how…
You are welcome to come and see it anytime. And, fortunately, Kenny was able to capture the light-filled images on his digital camera for you, too.

























Once upon a time, there was a little sprite – a blond haired, light-filled spirit who lived here on earth.

She was always so full of life and joy. Everyone in her presence sensed her light.

The children who lived nearby loved to play with the sprite. She always knew how to have fun and enjoy each and every moment.

One day the little sprite noticed that there were newcomers moving into the neighborhood’s hilltop. She was so excited that she ran to tell her mother, father, sisters and little brother –
she could not wait to welcome the new family. So one day soon after, she went, along with her mother and little sister and another neighborhood friend, to greet the newcomers.

The new family was so happy to have such welcoming, kind neighbors; they were all very thankful.

And how the new little girl from the hilltop loved to play with the little sprite! The sprite was always so full of spunk and had such fun ideas. When the little sprite and little girl played, they were sure to include the sprite’s little sister and their other good friend who lived nearby. The four of them loved to play – they played inside; they explored outside; they built imaginary houses; they found a perfect climbing tree. They ran and sang and laughed.

One glistening day shortly after Thanksgiving, a beautiful snow had covered the land. The four friends were playing on the hilltop, inside the cozy house. “Let’s draw a beautiful winter picture!” they agreed. And they soon went to work.

One friend drew a landscape with lots of snow, a frozen pond, a house, and a family of snowmen. Another drew, above that, the clouds with stars and Saint Nicholas flying his sleigh. The sprite’s little sister just watched, enjoying the scene.

The sprite was so excited to add to the drawing she could barely wait. But then it was finally her turn. And there, in the starry sky, she carefully drew a beautiful angel – watching over the house below. She looked at the angel, paused, and then added a smile to the angel’s face.

The friends admired the picture …smiled at the sprite … and then, all together, they ran off to play.

(Mary tells me that after Jaiden added the smile, she turned to her friends and said "Perfect!)

Angel of ours, Jaiden,
we love you so
Your laugh, your joy
Your zest for life
You are our friend
Our friend for life

Angel of ours,
we love you so

And now it’s hard
Without you here
How we do miss you
Your smile so dear

Angel of ours,
we love you so

You taught us all
How to live and love
With strength and courage
And trust in God above

Angel of ours,
we love you so

So please know this
Our Angel dear
We will never forget
What you gave us here

Angel of ours,
we love you so
And although you live now
In heaven’s heights
We’ll cherish your spirit
For all of our lives

For dear Jaiden,
we love you so
We hope you know
just how much so.