My Son

I haven't really written loads about him, up until now; this is largely because he's very small, and I've been getting to know his personality this past year.

Well. He's a year and a bit, now, and he's well worth writing about, not least of all because he's such a 'good' baby. I mean, I hate that phrase--my mother would say, all babies are gifts from God, and I wholeheartedly agree--but I've gotta give my son credit, he's just about the pleasantest baby I've ever met in my life. I don't just mean the physical things (so many of which, he makes so unbelievably simple). It's great that he sleeps (always has! still does!) and that he can amuse himself for a while if I need him to, and that he really only cries if he's very tired or hurt (that is all amazing, a true gift of convenience and cosmic slack-cutting); but even better, he has the loveliest little personality.

He likes everyone. I myself am a firm believer in looking for the good in people, even when you have to search high, low, and in-between for it, but my son... my son doesn't even have to look. He just glances at people, and you can see it on his happy, open little face: he is actively giving them the benefit of the doubt. He is convinced that they will get along splendidly, until they give him a reason to believe otherwise. If my son had the necessary understanding of language, he would absolutely subscribe to the ideology that strangers are just friends you haven't met yet.

He is like a smiling, golden, chubby-cheeked, sunny-haired, sweet-eyed ball of sunshine, and I love him more every day. After my daughter (who is AWESOME, by the way; just rather intense in her awesomeness) my son was *exactly* what was needed. I cannot imagine a better foil for my daughter, or a more perfect way to complete our small circle of familial goodness. In the book of family, my son is the feel-good chapter that ties up the loose ends and leaves you with a warm glow. He is the chord change, from minor to major, that finishes a poignant song on an upbeat note. When the credits are about to roll, my son is the scene that turns the movie into a truly uplifting story and causes you to the leave the cinema smiling.

If you knew my son, you'd be happier for it. My son is like the balm for a wound that never heals. He is a reward, for trusting in God or Fate or just the concept of hope, and taking a path after you've learned that the way is fraught with danger and uncertainty. If my son were a song, he would be Beethoven's 9th (Ode to Joy) and you would rejoice, simply to hear him. I know I do.

He is my Bunnyman, and I love him more with every beat of my heart.