A LETTER, LATE

A friend of mine, dear and powerful, recently spawned a daughter.

On the day the daughter was born, I wrote her a letter (the daughter, not the mother). The letter has languished on my computer for three months now. I keep adding "transcribe letter by hand" to my to-do lists (for I believe that the hand-written letter possesses signifiance a font cannot: writers' cramp in your honor), but life moves quickly and I forget. So before I let life go longer, I'll offer the letter, and though pathetic in comparision, my mode of surrender won't be by hand but by blog.

At least this way it finally gets delivered.

It won't be tough for you to figure out who my new-mommy friend is, but I'll leave her relatively anonymous so that you can revel in the triumph of successful detective work when you've figured it out on your own.

•••

Dear Baby Bird,

A welcome is in order. Your arrival has been one highly anticipated, not only by your Mom and Dad, but also by those who know and love your parents—and we are many.

The joy of your birth was timely. The world is struggling—rife with starvation, greed, sorrow, and poverty. This planet's inhabitants are feeling the struggle. We are finding ourselves continually faced with wickedness incongito; and the disguises are good. It can be frightening contemplating what's going on around us; but when you arrived, those events and stresses didn't matter. Amid the turmoil that is Earth, there was a brand new pile of happiness placed on your mother's chest. You came, and you brought with you a reminder that the world, though we're bound here, isn't all there is.

I am eager to observe your progress and evolution. You're going to be pretty. You're going to be a quick study. You'll be a little wild. You'll be precocious as all Hell. And you'll be loved.

At this moment, I can't snatch enough of the right words to illustrate what remarkable parents you've landed. They are intelligent, thinking people, and you are fortunate to have those brains and reason applied to your upbringing. I'm not a mother, but if I choose to become one, I would want to do it with the commitment and enthusiasm your mom has embraced as she's prepared for your coming.

Also, you should be told that she didn't spend your gestation lazing and consuming; she stayed vivacious and beautiful, preserved her health, created, maintained her inimitable sense of humor, and helped others. You're fortunate in that your mom isn't going to let motherhood swallow her to disappearance; you're going to be reared by a person who has outside interests and makes self-improvement and respect a priority. Know that not everyone gets that.

Because of the talents and sincerity your parents possess, people gravitate toward them; thus you will also be influenced by the big, loud, opinionated community of those who appreciate and admire them. You'll be able to seek and find answers to many a question within this community. That too will be interesting to watch.

I don't know your dad as well as I hope to in the future, but I must say that the humility and trepidation with which he's approached fatherhood is endearing. He hasn't been flippant about his responsibilities. You're in the hands of a man that wants so much to raise you thriving and to understand the weight of your life within his existence.

Welcome, small thing.

Love,

Meg