Today is a very special day. Twenty-five years ago today, I gave birth to my beautiful oldest daughter, Jessica. It seems like yesterday, and at the same time, it was another lifetime ago. Maybe several lifetimes. So much has happened since then....so much we've had to survive. The day she was born, I remember the nurse bringing her into the room and handing her to me. As I held her, I remember thinking, "What gives me the right to Name this child...to determine what she will be called for the rest of her life? What if that is not who she is?"
Turns out her name was about the only thing I got right, because she resembles nothing of the person I visualized she'd be when I looked down at that tiny baby laying in my arms back then. She did not turn out to be tall, or dark, or lithe. She does not have a fabulous job in a big city. She's not especially well-traveled. She didn't go to college (yet), or become a lawyer or a doctor. No, she most certainly did not turn out like I thought...or even hoped.
But she is so much better that I ever could have dreamed.
Bright and beautiful, with a sparkling personality and a wicked sense of humor, she is awesomely talented, and has an incredibly poetic soul. Deeply spiritual, but unbelievably grounded....and with insight well beyond her years, she has at times been my teacher, my therapist, and my mentor...but always my best friend. She has become an incredible mother who is absolutely devoted to her family. Despite everything I would have condemned her to, she has grown up...and far exceeded my greatest hopes.
Happy Birthday, Jes. I love you.
Turns out her name was about the only thing I got right, because she resembles nothing of the person I visualized she'd be when I looked down at that tiny baby laying in my arms back then. She did not turn out to be tall, or dark, or lithe. She does not have a fabulous job in a big city. She's not especially well-traveled. She didn't go to college (yet), or become a lawyer or a doctor. No, she most certainly did not turn out like I thought...or even hoped.
But she is so much better that I ever could have dreamed.
Bright and beautiful, with a sparkling personality and a wicked sense of humor, she is awesomely talented, and has an incredibly poetic soul. Deeply spiritual, but unbelievably grounded....and with insight well beyond her years, she has at times been my teacher, my therapist, and my mentor...but always my best friend. She has become an incredible mother who is absolutely devoted to her family. Despite everything I would have condemned her to, she has grown up...and far exceeded my greatest hopes.
Happy Birthday, Jes. I love you.
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