A Letter to My Nephew to Be Born

Dear Nephew-to-be,

Today is March 7, 2006. According to the doctor’s records, you are scheduled to enter this world in two days by cesarean. I am writing to you in the hopes that someday, you’ll be able to look back on this to laugh and learn.

I am your Auntie Lily. I am the oldest sister of your mother. I am married to your Uncle Lenny (a pretty fun guy who will teach you the finer points about eclectic music). I will also be your Godmother. You’ll probably end up knowing me as the crazy Auntie who likes to talk in big words.

But that’s okay. If that’s how I positively affect your life, then I am content. At least you’ll have a large vocabulary.

I got this weird idea in my head last night that I wanted to write to you. As my writing friends say, “When you hear the voice speak to you, you write.” So here I am. Not quite sure what I want to tell you just yet. But, as with most things in life, you have to play it by ear. I’m sure it’ll just come to me.

You know, you’re coming into our lives at a very good time. You won’t appreciate how lucky you were to be born at this time, at least until you’re older. On the day you are born, you will be surrounded by much more than the love of your parents. Your Grandparents, your Great-Grandparents, your Aunts and Uncles, your cousins, and all sorts of other relatives and friends are standing by with open hearts. I hope that you will be comfortable in reaching out to each of us as you grow.

What can I tell you about life? I mean, I am 30-years old at this present time. I should know something about life, right? But then again, do I want to spoil the surprise? Yeah, I wouldn’t want to take that away from you. So I’ll leave the life lessons to you and your own path. I’m sure it’ll be a great show to watch, Little One.

So if I don’t want to spoil the surprise, how about I make a few deals with you? I’ll make you a few promises that I will try really hard to keep. In return, all I ask is that you don’t turn our family into a rendition of the Jerry Springer Show (Jerry Springer was an old talk show host who dealt with what we call “Trash TV,” otherwise known as “sensationalism.” Look it up in the dictionary I gave you). I’m pretty sure I’m not asking for much, so I think you’re coming out on the sweet end of the deal.

Okay. Auntie Lillian T. White hereby states:

I promise to drop everything for you if you need me.
I promise to treat you and your older brother equally.
I promise to be honest with you (BUT I reserve the right to lie to you, if I know it will protect you).
I promise to always have a piece of candy in my purse for you.
I promise to teach you how to appreciate reading, music, and sports.
I promise to teach you how to play “Chopsticks” on the piano.
I promise to make sure the politicians and fanatics don’t ruin this world for you.
I promise to always be a positive force in your life.
I promise to take you to at least one baseball game a year.
I promise to learn the corny “pull a quarter from behind your ear” trick, just to see you smile.
I promise to show you about your culture and heritage like Grandma, Grandpa, and Great-Grandma did.
I promise to help you understand the difference between right and wrong.
I promise to help you see that everything isn’t black and white…there’s a lot of gray.
I promise to buy you awesome gifts for Christmas, your Birthday, and just because.
I promise to pick you up when you call me late at night, no questions asked.
I promise to discipline you fairly, even though I’ll cry and feel bad about it later on.
I promise to bait your hook when we go fishing on the pier, just like your Great-Grandpa did for me.
I promise to treat you as my own.

I think I covered all the bases. I’m sure we can tack a few more on as we go along. It’s not like you’re going to make me sign it as a contract!

But bottom line, kiddo…I hope you will grow up know that you were born to this life to LIVE. We hope that you’ll take every opportunity to learn and grow. We hope that you will be successful. Whether you become a big time lawyer or if your dream is to be a professional unicyclist, I’ll stand behind you. Even when everyone is seemingly gone, know that you are never really alone.

Oh, there’s another one. “I promise that you’ll never feel that you are alone.” This one is really important. I make this promise to my family and friends all the time. Sometimes, they don’t even realize it. But it’s important to me. Because I love each and every one of them.

Okay, Little One. It’s time for me to wrap this up. If you need anything from me and Uncle Lenny…please ask. We’d give you and your brother the world if we could! But until then, rest easy knowing that your family and future friends are going to help shape your bright future.

Love you always,

Auntie Lily