On the 21st day of the 21st year of the 21st century, a child was born.
My son.
We weren’t expecting him until the 35th day so the past two weeks have been a blur.
I don’t know what the future holds for my son (hell, I don’t even know what color his eyes will be yet) but I love that the first line of his story reads like a fairy tale.
I hope he continues to lead a fairy tale life complete with seemingly insurmountable character-defining obstacles typical of a hero’s journey, love that feels pre-ordained, and a “happily ever after” ending late in his twilight years.
If you’ve ever heard the story of my daughter’s birth two years ago, you’ve basically heard the story of my son’s.
They were nearly identical situations except that our son arrived earlier than expected (though still considered full term) and that while our daughter came home with us after just five days, it took our son a full two weeks to finally make it home.
In lieu of a typical column this week I’m encouraging readers to listen to my award-winning storytelling performance sharing the story of my daughter’s birth. Though the challenges in the story felt insurmountable at the time, they were a necessary bridge to cross in our own pursuit of happily ever after.
As I stepped through the story’s sequence of events for a second time with my son’s birth it was strange how many of the things that were so scary the first time around now felt almost comforting with their familiarity.
We’ve all been home together since Thursday, two weeks after my son’s birth and one day before my daughter’s second birthday. We’re doing well. My wife, Jenny, is recovering very well from the c-section and couldn’t be happier with our now complete family.
To hear a full analysis and commentary on this award-winning story check out my guest appearance on Episode 72 of the Speak Up Storytelling Podcast from November 12, 2019.