An Open Letter to My Son on His 9th Birthday
My son—
This morning, I had a hard time waking up. My body remembers the work it took to get you here, so I let myself rest. I let your dad bring me breakfast in bed. I lingered, and I thought about what a beautiful and wild thing it is to bring a child into the world. It’s a miracle. YOU are a miracle.
In about an hour, your friends will arrive to celebrate you are your house. You are so excited, and so proud. You’re outside with your dad setting up games for them. You’ll do a pizza tasting and some Switch before cake. You love your big, new couch. You are a chill guy, but I can tell your stoke level is high. We’re talking about making this a regular thing, especially because it seems to have motivated you to clean your room :)
Eight has been a good year for you. A few weeks ago, we were at a party hosted by your sister’s bff’s parents. I was talking to another parent about our book projects. You walked by and I asked you if you thought you were more famous or I was more famous. Very casually you reminded us all that you are the most famous, probably because you were on TV—and thrice!
Your next book comes out in August, and it’ll be our biggest splash yet. What a gift making something cool and real with your art has been for me. I hope it’s been a gift for you, too. You’ll probably decide about that later, but thanks for giving me the opportunity now. We’re the best mother-son duo I know.
You have a teacher who loves you and a bunch of grandparents who really love you. You’ve become a bit of a smart alec, but I’m letting that slide for now because you are very smart and very fun and not often wrong. Unsurprisingly, you are slaying every subject, but that’s not what we care about. We care that you are kind, you’re patient, you’re curious, and surprisingly generous. You are the olive branch I imagined you to be.
Thank you for making me a mom, ODP. Thank you for all that you are. I am honored to be on this journey with you, even if I’m not allowed to wait on the porch and hug each one of your friends before schooling them on the court.
I love you,
Mom
