Day 07 - A picture of someone/something that has the biggest impact on you

Gabrielle and Britain, the loves of my life.

Well no duh. This one wasn't even a challenging question. This part of the 30 day challenge doesn't really elicit any deep meaningful response that is earthshatteringly revealing. Anyone who knows me a little bit knows that Britain is my number one, Gabrielle is my number two, and that I love them both more than anything. That't it. Short post.

Okay really, I can give a few tidbits about their impacts on my life. Britain has balanced me out to be a much better person. More tolerant, more educated, more willing to seek new perspectives. I appreciate her for that. Gabrielle has taken the love that I feel for my wife and added a richness to my love for Britain as well as earning herself a special place in my affections.

There is a transition you go through when you get married. The love you feel, the experience of being married, and the depth of your love are completely foreign and literally impossible to comprehend before marriage. Try as hard as you can to explain it, un-wedded couples try to pretend they know and understand. Get married and you realize how much richness, joy, and excitement is added. Those same couples almost every time say, "Wow! I had no idea!"

Having a child is a similar. Unique and different from marriage, of course. But this is the best comparison I can present. A change that can't be explained until you make the change. A couple will try to convince you that they know how much you can love the child and how it will change your life. But no. Talk to them at the 1 or 2 year birthday and they'll say the same thing, "Wow! I had no idea!" I am guessing (only being weeks past the 2 year mark) that this only compounds itself and in another 2, 5, 10, etc. years, I'll repeat the same phrase over and over.

To end I'd like to share something that bugs me: "I know what its like to have a kid; I have a [insert pet type]!" Oh brother. "I love my babies [referring to pet] just as much as you love your child." How naive to assume that a human can love a pet as much as a human child. I will fully acknowledge the attachment you can feel to a pet. You can really love them too; they can care for you in return. To say that you have deep commitment and experiences as a loving caretaker because you have a pet is either a sign of know-it-all-ness or an expression of insecurities (often both). No dog will compare to a human child. No hamster will ever give you the pure joy of sweet and loving eyes when they first utter the words, "I love you Daddy." Have a kid and see if you still call your fluffy mammals your babies. To close this point on a lighthearted note (kind of), You can't say you love your pet as much as someone loves their child because you don't let someone you really love run around in a car, un-fastened or in some kennel/cage. Until you get a pet restraint device at or on par with the safety of current child restraint devices, you have no way to claim you care more or even equal.

Okay, I have to end differently. I love Gabrielle. I know that every mother and father that reads this post can join with me and know that the most challenging and trying part of your lives is also your source of greatest joy and fulfillment. Go to your child tell them you love them and remember that first smile, that first da da, or ma ma, that first time that little hand held your finger to take a walk down the street. That's love.

Up Next: Day 08 - Short term goals for this month and why