3/26/21

Dear Atlas,

It’s me, your Dad.

We’re in the final countdown until your birth, and each day that passes feels special as your Mom and I take the final steps toward meeting you.

You, Atlas. I’ve been thinking about you a lot. No matter where I find myself in the day, you’re somewhere in my thoughts. I wonder what you’ll be like. I catch glimpses of memories that haven’t happened yet. I also think of the times we’ll be bonding as a family. There are many wonderful memories ahead.

I’ve learned a lot about myself in this process, Atlas. Ever since you were conceived, I’ve felt my own countdown to sort things out in my life. Some things need to change. Other things need to stay.

Most of all, I need to take accountability for my actions in a greater way than I have before.

Yesterday I was doing the dishes and a thought hit me: “There are many ways to say ‘I love you.’” And that can include a variety of things—doing the dishes, for example.

Your Mom has loved me in new ways lately, too. It’s as if a new dimension is opening up between us, the “us” part that needs to work as a team. That “us” is a powerful thing, Atlas. You can count on it when you need encouragement, and it will never let you down. However, you have to give yourself to it fully if you want to reap those benefits.

I’m trying my best not to want or wish you to be anything or anybody other than yourself. But if there’s one trait I hope you get, that your Mom and I both share, it’s the gift of throwing yourself fully into your circumstances and being involved in the outcome.

Your Mom and I have both taken a lot of risks in our lives, Atlas, and each in our own ways. Yet none of these risks have ever felt close to what I feel with your arrival coming up soon. It feels like we’re being given a tremendous blessing, opportunity, and chance to “level-up” this life experience.

You. You’re a little bundle of joy, and you’ve already started to make huge waves of impact in our household.

I love you,

Dad