Exert 1

….Paul gently placed Franco in my arms, and I sat with him, rocking back and forth. Franco continued to cry. Quietly, Paul left the room, and I was alone with my son.

I looked down at him, at his tiny little face screwed up and wrinkled from crying. He was red and wailing. I said nothing. Instead, I rocked him and touched his face gently with my hand. I didn’t pat him or shush him or beg him to stop crying; I simply placed my hand on his cheek. Almost instantly, his tears slowed, the wailing stopped, and he calmed down. Like magic, I had been able to make my son calm down with only a touch. I looked at my hand, amazed and yet humbled by the power I had. I was struck by a realization: Here I am, a first-time mom, and this little tiny baby is in my arms crying. Putting my palm to his face instantly calmed him down. I was overwhelmed with the awe-inspiring amount of power I had. Why was I given that? What had I done to deserve it?

A second wave of emotion hit me right after the first. I was filled with gratitude—gratitude that, as a mother, I had that power to comfort my son, to transfer my love and protection to him with a touch. And then I felt a sense of responsibility like I had never known before. When I was pregnant, of course, I felt responsible for this little person growing inside me. He was completely dependent on me for everything, and I did my best to make sure that he’d be ready for everything that came his way once he arrived in this world. But, until that moment when I had calmed Franco with just a touch of my hand, I hadn’t realized that my responsibility was far greater than I’d ever imagined. I was a mother; I was responsible for raising my child to become who he was going to be. I was responsible for instilling in him confidence, generosity, grace, and independence. That was all up to me. I had never felt such responsibility before. I looked down at my son, now sleeping soundly in my arms, and I realized that by giving birth to this child, I was given a great power and a great responsibility.

I was determined not to waste either one.