beautiful bundle

“Can you believe I did this?” 

Wisdom from the cool lips of a new father.  Johnny — the baby of our family — the last one in a lineup of five in seven years led by me. 

Laid-back, life-of-the-party, steal-your-heart Johnny turned daddy at 41. 

“Wanna hold her?”

I shake my head, shrug my shoulders to say “Ooooh, I don’t know — I’m a little afraid.”

“Aw, come on — you can’t do anything to hurt her — she’s wrapped like a football.”

(She’s not the one I’m worried about.)

“Ok.”

I catch the easy pass from the quarterback in the room, albeit reluctantly.   I haven’t put myself in the position of holding a baby since — well — 

Since I let myself consider the probability that — I’d never hold one of my own.

But this is Johnny’s baby.  And what am I afraid of anyway? 

The beautiful bundle rests in my arms, her dreamy eyelids drawn down sweetly on her three-hour-old face.  When she stirs a tiny bit, I’m just a tiny bit alarmed.  But look at her, just look at her. 

She’s perfectly amazing, and yes, can I say it?

“I can believe you did this.”