“About mid-flight, our daughter awoke and politely informed us she wanted a new diaper. 10 minutes later, another attendant, Bobby, greeted us and inquired about our daughter. We thought nothing of it. Then, we heard the intercom announce a special guest on the flight. The entire cabin erupted in cheers and applause.”
“I sat in that lovely little café with a friend. I could see your son out of the corner of my eye. He was climbing on things that weren’t meant for climbing. You came and did your best to try to keep him from breaking something, or worse yet, disturbing us. You apologized more than once.”
“I honestly thought she was joking. I’d flown 50 times and had zero issues. She got snippy from the get-go. ‘No strollers over 20 pounds allowed at the gate.’ I replied, ‘Weigh it then.’ I was ready to make her look like a fool. There’s no way it was that heavy. I loaded that thing up onto the scale. I stood there, dumbfounded.”
“If my mother-in-law wanted to load the dishes for me, I didn’t want her to because I like to load mine a certain way. I consumed myself with ensuring trash was thrown away immediately and constantly just cleaning up after people. I was always on edge.”
“‘She called, ‘He’s here!’ I hung up the phone and went to the bathroom. I looked down to see nothing but blood. My nephew entered the world as our IVF failed. I’d never carry a child. I’d never experience pregnancy or give birth. How could this happen at this moment? The pain was immeasurable.”
“Saying ‘I love you’ when they are going to bed is not nearly enough. You can’t be over-present. They want our time. Our warmth. Our interest in their lives. There are many fathers who aren’t engaged enough (or at all) with their daughters. That crushes me. This is one of life’s most honorable privileges.”
“A relationship might look more stable, but I don’t need to be in one to be happier or feel more loved. My heart is full enough with what I have.”
“One of my customers had a really bad-tempered Rhode Island Red rooster. He’d attack me every day and claw at my legs. I’d fight him off, but after a few months of delivering papers, the rooster was decidedly ahead and I was starting to get angry. One day he came charging at me. I decided I’d had enough.”
“Just because they don’t live the life we do or make the same choices we do doesn’t mean they’ve somehow screwed up. It doesn’t mean they are lost. It doesn’t mean they have ruined their lives. All we can do, as parents, is love them for who they choose to be and trust what we have taught them is enough.”
“I would never hand one of my kids off to a complete stranger. But you weren’t a stranger. Despite never knowing you. Despite your broken English and my zero ability to speak Spanish. For over half an hour, I watched as you sang to him, snuggled him, and loved on him. As I watched your son, my heart soared as I saw my future. And I know as you looked into the almond eyes of my boys, you saw your past.”
