Hello gang,
Its been a while since I posted but I see the regulars are still going strong. I’ve read every post since my last one, including those dealing with last week’s tragedy. I have my own happy perspective to add to that commentary:
Rather than spend the last few days watching endless coverage of the disaster and its after-effects, I had the fortunate occasion to spend four days in a maternity ward. On Friday, my wife gave birth to a healthy little girl.
For the next four nights, the other new dads and I would pass each other in the halls (often at 3:00 a.m.) and compare notes on how the weight gain or loss was progressing, was baby feeding well, have you settled on the name etc.- our neighbours checked-out without deciding between Nolan (dad’s choice) and Nathaniel (mom’s).
On my trips out to get food or a double espresso, I had the chance to read the papers, and I tried, but I just couldn’t get interested (I particularly missed baseball and hockey as a diversion).
[Aside - today I read that Air Canada wants $3 billion from the taxpayers, otherwise known as captive victims of a poorly run monopoly. The market cap’s only $500 million, the government should buy it back, close it down and let Westjet, or AMR, or BA, or Virgin, take over.]
The maternity ward is an oddly blissful place to spend some time. It is the one ward in a hospital that is generally filled with healthy, and extraordinarily happy, patients. Nobody spoke of the terrorist attacks in the entire time I was there.
As someone pointed out, life goes on, and I would add that new life joins us.
I now understand the significance behind the phrase ‘a bundle of joy’. |
