Eight

May 27, 2023

Dearest Solomon,

Today is your 8th birthday. I think it’s the first time you were visibly excited for it to be your birthday and that’s a wonderful thing in my book.

Your celebration was a near disaster, with your original party getting rescheduled at the last minute both to conflicts with your friends’ schedules and then with you getting Strep and being out of commission for a few days. Luckily, your mom saved the day, as always, and got everything back in order.

On Thursday, you had a field trip to the Denver Aquarium followed up by a few hours of jumping with your friends at Urban Air—a full day filled with fun.

Today, your birthday was spent mostly at home with family. All your grandparents were here with you which is a blessing in its own right. You opened presents first thing in the morning and we spent the day playing new games on your Nintendo Switch.

It’s been a year of growth and change. Let me reflect for just a moment on them.

New Loves

Childhood, much like life, is most blessed when you find and renew your love for it. You’ve seemingly discovered a few new loves this past year.

Fletcher

By far, as you declared on your own, your favorite new love was our new dog, Fletcher — a Shitzu rescue who joined the family not more than a few months ago. He’s a cuddly, lovable little soul and has none of the agro behavior his older brother Rex has. They couldn’t be more opposite and perhaps that’s why he seems to be your favorite.

Sonic

If your Sonic-themed birthday was a dead giveaway, all the time we’ve spent watching movies and now playing games is proof enough that this little hedgehog is one of your new loves. I remember Sonic from when I was younger, but never like this. It’s funny but you even will run like him.

School

I’m happy to report that despite the setbacks with homeschooling and remote schooling, everything is back on track and you’re kicking butt. I’d hardly call you a “nerd”, but you nerd out on plenty of things these days and it’s great to see you unlocking more of your potential every day.

Old Souls

Some things never change, that’s for sure. And while history doesn’t necessarily repeat, it sure does rhyme. I went back to look at last year’s letter to see what I had written and let’s update on those.

Challenge Yourself More

I had hoped that you would challenge yourself to get out of your comfort zone, but that’s not quite where you're at yet. You’ve definitely got your own competitive streak, but it’s not overt. I hope that pushes you to strive for more and to take on bigger tasks and risks, but we’ll see.

Be More Active

You still love skiing and took on your first black diamonds this year. It was so good to see you (and Mom) level up here. We didn’t get to go as much as we would have liked but every trip was better than the last and a memory of its own. At heart, though, you're still the homebody you've always been.

They say you can’t really remember much from before you are three. For me most of my true memories come from the very age you are at now. As I think back to those days, I can’t help but see so much of me in you every day.

Everything from your tiny appetite, skinny frame, nerding out, and penchant for staying home I see a glimpse of the younger me every day.

As parents, it’s natural for us to want you better for you. I’d be remiss to say I wished you were more of the things that I wasn’t, if not only because I think it likely makes life go a little easier as a kid growing up. But that’s just what I think.

It’s your journey, son. I’m sure you’ll find the path that you need. I know we’ll be there to support you no matter where it takes you.

Happy birthday, papa.

Love always,
Dad