The First Kick

Last night I got to feel something that is probably the coolest, most exciting feeling I have ever experienced.  I got to feel my second child’s first kick.  Well let me clarify and say that according to my wife, the soccer player inside of her has been kicking for a long time.  I however, have not been able to feel it, until last night.  There is the inevitable trial period where my wife tells me that she is kicking up a storm, but as soon as I put my hand on to feel it, she decides to play with me and not kick.  Last night I finally got to feel it!

This one tiny event makes everything seem so real.  It makes the birth seem that much closer, and it makes me so excited to finally get to that point. It is like that little child finally willing to say hello to me.  That one second, that little moment in time, or like we here like to call it, the little “slice of life” made me jump like a two year old.  I got the biggest smile on my face and then had to sit and wait for even more kicks. Of course that didn’t happen, but I will start small.  It brought back memories from this same event with my first child, and it was just as exciting as it was the first time.

As I reflect on this second of my life that brought so much joy to me, I realized that with all of the stress and chaos that surrounds us, you need to sometimes take a second and enjoy what life gives you.  This one moment made me forget about my students, bills, the non-stop virus that seems to be surrounding us, and every other stress that has entered my life.  It dissipated all of those things, and brought me a feeling of jubilation that will get me past all of that other stuff.  I can’t wait to meet this beautiful little girl!  She already means the world to me!