The idea of family has always been an interesting subject. From the family you come from, to the family you bring into the world, to the family that that family builds, you get a pretty big tree with pretty big branches and a mess of twigs. With each of those branches come a number of different personalities, temperaments, talents, goals, and the occasional arrest warrant. Though we’re all stuck in this grand grouping through what can only be assumed is a science experiment conducted by God, we find a way to make it all work and get along.
I’ve been blessed with the greatest of extended families I could have ever hoped for. From my grandparents, to my parents, to their siblings, to my siblings, to my cousins, to my children and, now, to their children, I couldn’t have drawn up a nicer looking tree. Sure, there has been the odd outlier among my broader brood, but even they have their charms.
This brings me to the biggest news and is something of a buried lead. The Boy and The Ber made a grandfather out of me on December 29 at 9:38 a.m. Little Livy added a bud to the Laz family tree and it’s already so easy to see she will bloom into the prettiest of flowers. Theologians and other weighty thinkers have long wondered if babies float in some kind of heaven and wait to be plucked down and given to the next family in line, or if the baby’s soul makes a conscious decision to join the family of its choice. I lean toward the latter; even more so since Livy decided to join the clan.
It’s difficult to explain, but one gets the feeling that we’ve met before and there’s an instantaneous and wonderful connection. When the boy looked into her eyes -- not for the first time, but for the first time following the stress of birth -- the two paired and they both understood this was a lifelong deal they had just made. Together, with no strings attached. How blessed I was to be able to see that. When she decided she had enough stimulation in her first hours of life, she nestled into The Ber’s arms, put her head on her tiny hands and looked as comfortable and safe as one could imagine. The Ber was born to give comfort to such a small thing that already had jumped in a big way into all our hearts.
When The Boy was born, I had this instant connection and knew the world would forever revolve around him. When The Girl made headlines she was going to turn a three-person family into four, I was really worried. It was impossible for me to believe I had any room left in my heart for a new arrival. I honestly thought The Boy had soaked up all the love I had to give. However, the moment The Girl made her arrival I knew. Love is not a finite thing. If you have more to love, your capacity to love grows equally. What a great gift from the manufacturer of the human body! If we need more love, we get an extra tank in our heart to love even more.
And so it comes to Livy. She doesn’t take an ounce of love away from anyone. Besides the special gift she brings all bundled up in her onesie, she added an extra tank in the hearts of the new papa and momma, Rexi, Grandma GG, Auntie Em, Nonna Jo, Grandpa Dan, a few dozen other twigs on the branch and, especially, to the one who puts his words and his heart out on this blog from time to time. Thank you Livy for blessing us all with your arrival and, no, you can’t borrow my car when you turn 16.
