An upstanding citizen
Railways were a revolutionary form of transport
and are all
but extinct. An airplane flying overhead used to provoke wondrous awe:
now we
barely give flying a second thought.
Jasper began as an almost inert material, which had many advantages for us. We could lie him down in a cot or basket and check back on him from time to time, unless he protested about something.
Once he could sit up and turn over, both marvels at the time which have long since been taken for granted, his ‘office’, the Baby Einstien activity centre, became our new respite. JD would be happy in there for a good 20 minutes, giving us time to clean up after him and the peace of mind of knowing where he was at all times.
As soon as he could crawl reliably, to admiring gasps from his crowd of two, the office was no longer a sanctuary. Jasper wanted to move, preferably towards some form of sharp or otherwise dangerous object. At least this development prompted us to create a safer environment.
And now, the final frontier has been breached. Our offspring is on the verge of taking his first steps. Due to his penchant for his own reflection, he has taken to grabbing the window ledge and pulling himself up, to say hi to the handsome fellow in an outfit just like his. From there, it was only a matter of time before he stood on his own two feet.
On Monday, Jasper grabbed his high chair from a sitting position, pulled himself upright, unclasped one hand, looked around for an encouraging smile from Carolina and I, then let go with the other hand.
Like Stephenson unveiling his Rocket to an excited public, or Orville Wright achieving his first seconds of flight, the little man was swept up in the moment, seemingly amused and perplexed by gravity’s sudden inability to pull him down to earth. He wobbled once, then balanced again. We held our breath and waited for the crash that would surely follow.
But after ten seconds of standing, he lowered himself expertly onto his bottom. One day in the near future, this now-amazing achievement will seem unremarkable. I hope I’m able to appreciate everything he does, however mundane and ordinary it seems to we jaded adults. Sleep well.
