Dear Gabriel

Dear Gabriel,  


It might be too early to write you this now. 

After all it would take a few years before you learn how to read but I think you need to know... 

The time will come when you and your mom will argue, it might be about something big or entirely petty. 

Whichever it is, it does not matter.

I know it will happen.  A lot.

After all, you are my son.

In those times you will try to be eloquent, rational and maybe a little dramatic.  You will speak with conviction. You will be logical. 

I hate to tell you this now but, you will never win.

Don't feel bad, she means well.  She only has your best interest at heart.

She will correct you a lot. Be at your heel about the smallest of things. Ask you to tidy up your room. Take up all your space with the knick knacks she will hoard. Be on your case about school, your dirty socks, pester you with the identity of your crush. She will get on your nerves at least twice a day.

But...

Never talk down to her.

She quit her Job for you.

It paid well, made her circle the globe and gave her perks like free massage at the Hilton. This is not entirely accurate but I think you get the point.
 
 It was job a lot of people dreamt of having.

But she gave it all up, so that she will have more time to be with you.  

Two months on the way, she flew home scared. 

Clutching her belly from all the bumps and air pockets for more than five hours praying to God you will be alright.  

Tell me Gabriel,  how would it feel if something was growing inside of you?  Kicking and squirming.  Pushing your ribs aside to accommodate the mass that constantly expands, not knowing how big it will get? 

She carried you for nine months.  All the weight that eventually crept in was not kind to her frail almost fragile figure.  All I could do was massage her back and feet before she sleeps at night but is was never easy for her, you were never easy.  

She bore all of that for you.  She put all the discomfort and pain, yes pain, she experienced aside to have you.

I tried my best to cook healthy and tasty foods for her but I knew that she did not really like all of them.  She is not a fan of the oatmeal, the soupy fish stews and all the fiber I fed her.   Yet she took them all in, flinching every time she chew, hoping it will help you grow and be healthy.

She spent countless hours worrying about your well being, made her whole world revolve around how and what she must do to make sure you are alright. 

Ultimately, she allowed the doctors to put her to sleep while they were looking at her grinning maybe whispering amongst themselves as they clean their scalpels, to make sure that you will experience less stress at birth, at her expense. (I was not really there inside the OR but I was worried too and imagined a lot while waiting, there was also he car accident I was involved in but that is a story reserved for another time)

And you came out perfect.  The first time I saw you, I cried. You are more than we ever expected, we are blessed.

All because of your mom's vigilance. 

She does it still.  

You are now a few weeks old and you wake her in the middle of the night demanding to have milk. She barely sleeps and can not stand the pang in her heart when you cry. I can not help but stare whenever she holds you, seeing; almost touching the love she emits for you.

When no one else is in the room she would go to me and break down.  As her tears make a puddle at the corner of my sleeves she would desperately ask why she cant make you calm, why she can not stop you from crying no matter how hard she tries because she worries about your condition.

Your Mom is amazing!  You mean the world to her. 

Treat her with respect and love her with all your heart as she does to you. 

Do not break her heart. 

Always remember what I tell you now. 

Never forget.  

She might not be able to tell you this all the time but she loves you dearly. 

Take care of her always.

Try to get along. 

Make her happy. 

Warning: 

Never go to me when you fight, I will always take her side.

I might love you without limits, but she is the love of my life and to tell you honestly its more than that, she is my life. 

Loving you both, 

Dad