What a world these kids are coming into: kindness and concern abound from every corner. Just look at the pictures, and think whether children have ever more lovingly been received. William Blake could not imagine a greater innocense. Presently, Uncle Tim, Suzy's brother, has flown in to spend time with us, and his wife Julie is coming out a few days later to stay with us the rest of the week. Do you see what I mean? They're taking shifts with their own wonderful children in order to take shifts with ours. What can Suzy and I do but wonder after such support--our thanks is insufficient--only awe could begin to be the appropriate reponse any more.
And then there is what is happening at Heritage High School, my place of work. Thanks mainly to Mike and Andrea, Tony and Shanna (--friends like family and also colleagues), the school has done a "diaper drive" for the DeStefano trio. Yea, incredible--soccer players, students, parents and teachers are all bringing in diapers and wipes to anonymously drop into one of two boxes. I cannot tell you what this gesture means--what it suddenly means to be an Eagle--how my children have already been taken under wing, so to speak. It's amazing. Mike and Andrea brought us a large load of collected diapers and deposited it in our garage before I had returned to school. I thought that was the end of it--the end of an endlessly gracious gesture. But just yesterday, I brought home another load, equally large, collected since last week; and today, I brought home four more packs. One soccer parent even asked Tony Hurt to pass me a 50 dollar bill, regretful he could not find time to buy diapers himself. Tony eventually gave me $13.76 of it the next day--yea, he dropped the change into my hand, said thanks and walked on. I looked into my hand, unaware of what was happening, counted the coins, and said, you're welcome...
Such kindness. The world could turn permanently cold tomorrow: I could be trekking my three across ashy desolation, sticking to McCarthy's road and escaping anthropophagy at every turn, and still these little consciouses would know and always believe in a world of warmth and love; and, for that, again, there are not thanks enough in either or both of us.
Now, that's not to say everything is smooth sailing. No, Suzy and I are most certainly becoming delirious. In Suzy's case, she is almost consumed with worry. She'll hear the babies cry and think, "Oh, they're in trouble;" and then, she'll not hear anything at all and think,"Oh, they're in trouble." For my part, I will wake up in the middle of the night and wander around the bedroom trying to pick up imaginary babies resting precariously on the edge of the bed. One morning, I found myself cradling Suzy's arm, careful neither of us rolled over on it. Sometimes, I'll rouse Suzy and then she'll speak some inanity like, "Joe, I just fed them." I'll say, "Just fed them--alone--without me?" How is that possible? And then we'll look at each other--all contours and shadows, and dumbly try to figure out what planet we're on. More than once I have put my arm across Suzy while she slept, and she would say, very calmly, "Let's put him back in the crib." "Who?" "Isn't there a baby on my chest?"...
And then there is what is happening at Heritage High School, my place of work. Thanks mainly to Mike and Andrea, Tony and Shanna (--friends like family and also colleagues), the school has done a "diaper drive" for the DeStefano trio. Yea, incredible--soccer players, students, parents and teachers are all bringing in diapers and wipes to anonymously drop into one of two boxes. I cannot tell you what this gesture means--what it suddenly means to be an Eagle--how my children have already been taken under wing, so to speak. It's amazing. Mike and Andrea brought us a large load of collected diapers and deposited it in our garage before I had returned to school. I thought that was the end of it--the end of an endlessly gracious gesture. But just yesterday, I brought home another load, equally large, collected since last week; and today, I brought home four more packs. One soccer parent even asked Tony Hurt to pass me a 50 dollar bill, regretful he could not find time to buy diapers himself. Tony eventually gave me $13.76 of it the next day--yea, he dropped the change into my hand, said thanks and walked on. I looked into my hand, unaware of what was happening, counted the coins, and said, you're welcome...
Such kindness. The world could turn permanently cold tomorrow: I could be trekking my three across ashy desolation, sticking to McCarthy's road and escaping anthropophagy at every turn, and still these little consciouses would know and always believe in a world of warmth and love; and, for that, again, there are not thanks enough in either or both of us.
Now, that's not to say everything is smooth sailing. No, Suzy and I are most certainly becoming delirious. In Suzy's case, she is almost consumed with worry. She'll hear the babies cry and think, "Oh, they're in trouble;" and then, she'll not hear anything at all and think,"Oh, they're in trouble." For my part, I will wake up in the middle of the night and wander around the bedroom trying to pick up imaginary babies resting precariously on the edge of the bed. One morning, I found myself cradling Suzy's arm, careful neither of us rolled over on it. Sometimes, I'll rouse Suzy and then she'll speak some inanity like, "Joe, I just fed them." I'll say, "Just fed them--alone--without me?" How is that possible? And then we'll look at each other--all contours and shadows, and dumbly try to figure out what planet we're on. More than once I have put my arm across Suzy while she slept, and she would say, very calmly, "Let's put him back in the crib." "Who?" "Isn't there a baby on my chest?"...
I am sure you have all heard about twins speaking pre-literate gibberish to one another. What you probably don't know--what I am now learning myself, is that the parents are the ones who teach them how to do it... Crazy household right now.
But, all in all, things are magnificent, and we have had such fortune of care as to make any and all hardships nigligible by comparison.
Time for their next feeding... Talk to you people later.
But, all in all, things are magnificent, and we have had such fortune of care as to make any and all hardships nigligible by comparison.
Time for their next feeding... Talk to you people later.
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