SHE IS GROWING

Dear Spike:

I took you to the doctor’s this morning. Just a quick stop, in and out, to see how much you weigh.

Twelve pounds, nine ounces. Still so very, very small.

Dr. Schriewer plugged the new numbers into her computer and sighed. “She’s still on the same curve. She is growing.”

Just slowly, she said.

“She didn’t like the butter,” I admitted abashedly.

“How could she not like butter?” our gentle Southern doctor gasped. “Everyone loves butter!”

Her words hung in the air — funny, but a little sad, too.

“She seems to like everything else,” I said. “She is starting to eat lots of different foods – quite a bit, really.”

Dr. Schriewer nodded and smiled. She seemed concerned, but not alarmed.

“She is growing,” she repeated confidently. “And look at is this way: You get to have a little baby for longer than most people do. That’s special.”

Yes, it is.

Love,
dad