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There is magic in a sleeping baby. My grandson is 3 months old, and I had the opportunity to spend part of my day yesterday with him. My daughter doesn’t ask me to babysit often, so when I do, I’m all in. That is all I do. When I arrived at her home, she said, “He’s sleepy, but he doesn’t want to be in his bed.”
So I took him in my arms and rocked him to sleep and just held him. Life stood still. There was no place I needed to be. Nothing that needed doing. I let go and felt the peace and warmth of a sleeping baby.
One of my friends is in the midst of a battle with cancer. She told me a few weeks ago that she wanted to hold a baby. The mother of four teenagers was aching for that calming simplicity of a newborn in her arms. Because I was off yesterday, I picked up Leo from his sitter and brought him over to see her. We marveled at how constant the work is with an infant. Changing, feeding, holding…
As I was talking to my daughter on the phone saying, “He’s fussy, but he won’t take the bottle.”
She responded, “He’s probably just tired.”
And I looked over at Amy who was gently rocking and patting him to sleep. Ah, the wonder of a sleeping baby. I secretly pray he has healing powers, too.
Gentle calm of a sleeping baby
Reflections on the Teche 