In keeping with the meteorological metaphors, the sun peeked out Thursday. It was nice to walk into the Vicksburg Convention Center without an umbrella, but better still, it was nice to walk into what I knew would be my daughter’s best preliminary night. And it was. The cloud of just-get-it-overwith swimsuit competition lifted to reveal a glorious night of talent.

Each of the Miss Mississippi contestants has an area of competition in which they know, really know, that they shine. For my daughter, it is definitely talent, and she did not disappoint.

For every mom, there are moments of sheer pride and joy during the competition, moments when we know we’ve seen the best in our daughters, and moments when we know that the time, tears and travel are worth it to see them shining on the Miss Mississippi stage.

Don’t we all have those precious moments with our children?

Whether it’s sports, pageantry, bible drill, choir, band, or simply the thrill of hearing them read for the first time, we have those moments of exhilaration as we revel in their accomplishments. Will others always see them through our proud and biased lens? No, definitely not.

There are even times when we want to distribute lens cleaner to the rest of the world so that everyone can see our children the way we do … but, in reality, it’s OK if the world never does.

We see them. We hear them. We know how far they’ve come. We marvel at their work ethic. We remember that this is how God sees us, and we are humbled by that overwhelming realization.

There are 44 contestants, yet only one winner. There are 44 families on this journey who all wish that we could have a moment with the judges to say

“Don’t you understand how wonderful she is? Do you realize how far she’s come? Can’t you see how hard she’s worked?”

If it were left to the mothers, there would be 44 Miss Mississippis. But, it’s not.

We must trust the judges are choosing a young lady who represents the best in all of them. I know that they will.

For that young lady, there will be the eternal sunshine of wearing the title of Miss Mississippi. Storms may come her way, but she will always have that bright light in her life story.

For others in the competition, the memories of a week in Vicksburg with Tropical Storm Cindy will be of how they learned to weather the storm.

The forecast calls for rain again Friday. The sunshine was brief, but it was there. 

Kristy Brumfield is the mother of Colby Brumfield, who is competing in the Miss Mississippi Pageant. Colby is the reigning Miss Warren County. Kristy has been associated with the pageant over the years, but this marks her first year as a “pageant mom.”