3/18/21

Dear Atlas,

It’s me, your Dad.

While you didn’t get a note from me yesterday, I think you got something better: a day together with me and your Mom, shopping for you!

Part of getting ready for you is buying you things. A lot of things. It seems like there are a lot of must-have accessories, tools, and secret items that only moms know about, and that they only find out about shortly before they have a child.

I’ll admit it felt somewhat strange to walk through the baby aisles as a shopper, as somebody intent on making purchases in those aisles. Normally, my only walk through the “Infants & Toddlers” section comes as part of a shortcut to another section of the store.

It’s starting to sink in that you’re on the way, for this reason among many. I don’t yet feel like a Dad, Atlas. However, I don’t feel like a non-Dad, either.

This transformation can feel a little overwhelming at times, Atlas. It’s as if you’re exchanging one outfit for another at the same time. Some parts of me are growing, while other parts are being worked out of my system because they no longer serve me.

It feels like another version of going through puberty, only as an adult.

Your Dad has to work now but loves you very much and is thinking about you.

Keep growing, Atlas. Give your Mom a break today, please. She’s pooped.

Love,

Dad