It Is Written
as come milestones, so do they.
Like locusts, they arrive. Their love descends in unsolicited advice and probing questions dressed up as innocent inquiries. The lilt of their voices dipped in honeyed judgement: how long is he at daycare? does he drink formula? is he still taking the binky?
Within seconds they infest my home, claim my body as their own, chatter about my weight, the length of my hair. They examine my cupboards; their fingertips linger on cans, turn labels outward as their noses turn up. Their affection is a thrum of stage whispers – what they would do if they were me.
Words sting, pierce holes in my armor. My feelings fester, froth in waves of self-doubt. In this colony, I have to be ever vigilant, balancing the need for acceptance with the need for independence.
The drone of their attention peaks; your birth created another dimension to this hive, ushered in a tightrope act of family and autonomy. I remind myself of the cocoon this clan weaves: walls that throb with laughter and belonging. In times of strife, they will house you.
Too soon, and not soon enough, they leave in a chaotic flurry of limbs, hugs and food containers. A cacophony of voices with last minute reminders of all the wisdom they’ve invested in me.
I barricade the door to the swarm. This buzz will always begin again for
as come milestones, so do they.
Parivash Goff
Parivash Goff is a writer living in the Pacific Northwest. When not working with students to decipher algebraic expressions, she spends her free time reading, writing, and enjoying the rare PNW sun. You can read her writing on her personal blog: Two Halves of One.
