Sparky and the Panda's

A wise British psychoanalyst once said "there is no baby without the mother". Since he was an analyst, we could imagine that he wasn't talking in a concrete sense, but that the baby exists because in some sense, the mother has created the baby in her mind.  It is starting to hit me that the babies I've had in my mind, those babies waiting for a body, aren't to be.

Sparky was real, he had a body for a precious few weeks.  The Pandas, what I started to call the last set of embryo's, had cell bodies for about 5 days, and then they were gone. But for me, these are my children. The only children who will ever share that precious mix of my husband and myself.  These children carried within their cells a mix of us that will never be expressed.  My blue eyes, his dimples, his congenital scrawniness, my impossible to fit feet, our big teeth and small jaws and on and on.  They also carried within them that indefinable, and indescribable hope of humanity--the hope that the love of our bodies, and the love of our minds will be expressed in flesh. These are the children that will never be, and yet they are so real to me I can see them running through the house, sleeping contentedly, making paper Mache models of the planets the night before the science fair.  I can see them growing up, and growing shy about their bodies, suffering the slings and arrows of first love, finding careers, finding love and becoming parents, and bringing home their own babies for us to love.  And yes, there will be children who will do this, and much much more. And we will love those children fiercely, aware of how close we came to not having any children to love at all, and yet, at this moment, it is my Sparky and the Panda's that I want.

When my husband and I were on the cusp of dating, I was trying to get him to kiss me and he said "I can't kiss you, because if I do, we'll have grandchildren, and I'm not ready for grandchildren yet."  In that moment a life flashed before my eyes, a life where we would make love, make children, and grow old together.  In some ways that vision hasn't changed, we do make love, we will make children, and we will grow old together, but this morning when I woke up, I just felt so so sad about the loss of...I suppose the loss of every piece of him going into our child.  Please don't reassure me that everything is going to be ok once I get 'the baby'.  I actually really know that. This stands alone; this loss is irreducible. 

So Sparky and Panda babies Mama loves you, and daddy loves you. And thank you for every precious second you were here with us.

Comments

[Sprogblogger]

Yes.

And now I'm crying again, damnit.

Beautiful post.

Yes to all of it.

[Amy]

Sending you my love babe. I know that your grief is so complete that you are just going to have to feel it. It’s hard for me to not want to make it better. I know there is really nothing to say or do but I do love you, I love you , I love you. Hugs.

[meinsideout]

Your post took my breath away. Some days the want, the need, for Baby P and my other children - the same as yours - mine and my husband's - is debilitating.

[Eva]

I'm speechless right now and I'm thinking of you and DH. xo

[Kami]

I tried to comment yesterday, but I couldn't get it to post. That at least gave me the opportunity to reread your post and see some additional comments.

And like they say, this is beautiful and so true.

[kate]

Beautiful post, and a beautiful way to honor such a singular feeling. I hope that paying tribute helps to ease the pain in some small way. Wish there was more I could say. xoxo

[Cathy]

I just found your blog and this post brought me to tears. I know what you are feeling right now and you put it into words beautifully. Thank you for putting into words what many of us feel every day going through this battle for children.

[Tia]

What a profound and heartfelt post to honor with love and tenderness your children's lives. Thank you for having the courage to write it. Hugs.

[Michele]

You are a mommy to these little ones and always will be. They will always live in your heart, and in both you and your husband.