This week, we finally came out of the frigid polar vortex that had plagued us for more than week. Our afternoon temperatures hit the 40s then the 50s and finally even reached the 60s yesterday. With the clear blue skies and warm sunshine, it was fantastic.
As I was walking my dogs through the neighborhood we passed a home with people sitting on the floor of their front porch. It was a woman and her husband. In between them was their baby, cooing and laying on a blanket. They were all enjoying a quiet moment in the sunshine.
The woman happened to look up and we caught each other’s eye. I said hi and she smiled sweetly and said hello back as she picked up her baby and cradled him (or her?) in her arms.
It was kind of beautiful.
As I continued walking it got me thinking that I missed out on that part of life. I married a woman 19 years older than me who already had two kids and couldn’t have more.
And while now, in retrospect, I’m grateful I never had children, that moment the other day made me feel feel a little bit wistful for the life experiences I never had – marrying someone my age, having babies and growing up together.
I realized that I’ll never know what it feels like to hold my baby in my arms and feel the love that I saw in that young mother’s eyes. I’ll never that mutual feeling of having your whole life ahead of you that this young couple shares.
It’s OK.
Nobody needs to play the world’s smallest violin for me. My life worked out just fine in a different way.
I’ll probably see that family again, since my current dog walling route takes me right past their home every afternoon. I hope their lives together are as magical as it seemed.