Hello, dear one

Well, I am undone with love. This little fella arrived a couple of weeks ago and proceeded to enthral us all. He's a snuggly wee bundle of hope and fire, a dragon lad, a soft-furred lion, a squirrel boy. He brings out the tender in us, gentles us, quiets us to a slow and rhythmic sway. He has us in his sway.None more so, of course, than his parents, my sister and brother-in-law. They've stepped into parenthood — this crazy, wonderful world where you're one minute bug-eyed with exhaustion and the next brought to your knees in adoration — with grace and courage. It's such a fundamental shift in identity becoming a parent, sudden too, with sleep deprivation and hormone mayhem and blood and milk and tears thrown in, all part of the mix with the wonder, the wonder and the fear and the marrow-deep love. To watch someone close to you take all this on is a miracle, and like all miracles it invokes a shiver and a gasp and a sigh.So, here's to you, little Squirrel. Here's to a long, happy, healthy life for you. Here's to your strength and your softness, your glorious head of dark hair, your wide eyes, your beautiful mouth. Here's to your growing and to those who hold you. Here's to you.