Elizabeth – 12.12.23 – Two Months

EJ,

You are so big and healthy. Other than a high fever recently, you have been doing really well.  Your mom has been really good about making sure you get plenty of nourishment.  And your mom and dad make sure we get daily updates on you, which make Gizzy and I feel like we are in Boston with you.  And you are starting to smile in some of the photos we receive. 

As with my letters to your brother, some may be quite short, and they will be sent sporadically. However, I want to make sure I capture these precious days and months in writing so that I do not forget how wonderful this time is. Sometimes these letters will be serious with some advice, sometimes they will be whimsical, and sometimes I may relay to you some of my own thoughts about the world you were born into.

Speaking of the world you were born into, 2023 has been a difficult year for much of the world.  Pandemic issues and policies by our government during the pandemic led to high inflation during the past several years in the United States. The war in Ukraine seems to have no end and the recent conflict between Israel and the Gaza strip is dividing much of the world.  Even more so than Ukraine, Gaza has become a huge humanitarian crisis.  However, there is good in the world too – and a lot of it.  Your uncles and I just finished a book that I gave them eight years ago.  And it is a book that I hope you read some day.  The Boys In The Boat is about personal courage, discipline, responsibility and perseverance.  But its main message is that we cannot thrive through self-reliance alone.  We need others.  And until we embrace that and live that, we cannot obtain true joy and happiness. In other words, our greatest joy is being connected to others.

Liza Jean, I cannot wait to see you on Monday when I get to Boston so that I can truly connect with you.  Your Gizzy says that when you smile at me for the first time, I will melt.  Well, I already did when you smiled at me over Facetime on the phone.  Maybe that was just a warm-up.  And as we realized during the recent pandemic of 2020, which forced many of us to isolate, nothing takes the place of being together.  And I hope that someday that you read parts of Together, another book I have given your dad and his brothers. So, I cannot wait to hold your warm little body next to mine and give you an actual kiss on your forehead. Until then…

With much love,

Papa Johnny