Being a parent is awesome. There is one person in my life who (at
least for now) thinks that his Dad and I are THE COOLEST people on the
planet and wants to spend every single second with us, even if it's
sitting on the couch doing nothing. Now, I'm a realist, and I know this
won't last forever, but for now, we're the MVPs. The most popular people
in the yearbook (the ones you used to highlight their name and put
stars and hearts beside). The ones who get picked first in gym class.
The king and queen of the homecoming court. Every moment I wasn't cool
growing up doesn't matter right now because I am the sun, moon and stars
to a little boy with a shaggy head of hair and the brightest blue eyes
I've ever seen.
Even before Little C was and idea that
Mr. P and I had, I knew that the
following words were true: "With great power comes great
responsibility." Embarking on parenthood isn't for the faint of heart.
It's that black, tarry newborn poop that nobody can prepare you for.
It's ridiculously high, unexplainable fevers that make you rush out to
the closest 24 hour Walgreens for baby Tylenol at 3 in the morning. It's
blowout diapers. It's bumped heads with gigantic eggs (and a very
understanding doctor that will explain to you "that's why they're called
toddlers and not walkers"). It's loads of snot and boogers and
sometimes breathing treatments. It's a lot of mess that they don't
prepare you for in health class during "sex ed" week, or even at the
hospital's parenting classes. It's a lot of fun, but sometimes it's a
lot of scary, and we've had our fair share.
Little C is
in a boo boo phase. About once a week, he falls and skins both knees.
He is 100% rough, tumble, wild, and boy and no amount of "Please walk!"
or "Be careful!" can slow him down. The sweet irony of him getting boo
boos is the cure: all it takes to fix them is a kiss from Mama or Daddy.
Sometimes we call in special assistance from our friends hydrogen
peroxide and Neosporin, but usually just a kiss does the trick. I think
he sometimes invents boo boos so that we will kiss them. I didn't know
that becoming a parent gave me super healing powers, but it's pretty
cool to know there is nothing in his little life that is so big a kiss
can't fix it.
The sad truth is, one day this little boy
is going to grow up into a bigger boy, and then an even bigger one. One
day he's going to get boo boos, but he's also going to grow out of
letting me kiss them to make them better. The world isn't always a
sunshiney place. It can be a beautiful place. A magical place. A
wonderful place. It can also be a dark place. A scary place. A lonely
place. One day his boo boos are going to move beyond bumps and scrapes.
One day he will may be injured on the baseball field and require an
x-ray. One day he may get into a fender bender and cause our car
insurance to go through the roof. One day, some girl may break his heart
into a million pieces and he may think he can never fall in love again.
One day, people may say words that will hurt him. I pray that when that
time comes, he will remember Mama and Daddy are still a safe place and
that we will always protect him and help pick him up and get him back on
his feet.
So World, I can't keep my little boy little
forever. Please be gentle with him. Reading and watching the news, I
read about people every day who have boo boos that they don't think can
be fixed. Be kind. Be tolerant. Be loving. Be accepting. The same magic
that allows me to heal boo boos with a kiss also empowers
me to be like a lioness and protect my young at all costs. As a mother,
it's my responsibility to do so.
And to Little C,
I'll love you forever. I'll like you for always. As long as I'm living,
my baby you'll be. And even when you're 35 and you get a boo boo from
playing with your little boy, I'll still be here to kiss it and make it
better.
Love,
Mrs. P
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