Puppy Dog TailsConner Joseph June 8, 2010

In the gloom of the misty ocean fog that rolls in off the shore, I rise to a quiet and reflective Sunday morning. It hasn’t been so these past few days. I typically find a soul or two rocking silently in this spot or that, eyes cast down at the small face cradled in their arms. This morning however, there are no people to be found in the usual places; this new family is finding its rhythm and they are all still fast asleep.

So it is in homes where a new baby has come to live. We spend our days counting fingers and toes, adjusting to schedules and looking for ourselves and others in the small perfect face that is nestled near our hearts. We soon come to know without a doubt that there are no other infants in the world that are as special as this one little baby boy.

At times like these there are no kick stands up adventures, not places to go, no other place that calls us more than to stand ready to take watch, hold this baby close, breath in their essence, and monitor the rise and fall of their chest with each tiny breath. When baby stirs I am ready, to help with diapers, and advice (when asked) but mostly to hold and cuddle. New Mom’s have good instincts and don’t really need their own mother’s. Yet, this Grandma is happy to be one of the first voices to be heard, faces to imprint upon, and safety to be felt when held.

It is not too many days into this new life, when Conner looks up into our faces and rewards us with a smile that lets us know all is right with his world. While he may not remember this particular day long into the future, he will never-the-less walk this world with an inward knowing that he was long awaited, instantly loved, and never far from our minds and hearts.



Soon I will be back to the world and its hassles and taking the bike for a weekend escape. However, for now Blaze sits idle while I witness the start of this new ride; the beginning of a new life adventure, one where I cannot follow. Yet it is important for me to be here at the beginning; this starting waypoint.