Becoming a Father #2: Hello

April 29, 2025

The day after my birthday, ‘A’ and I were sitting on the floor of the nursery late. (It was 8pm, which is considered late now.) I was using my leg in a V-shape to hold him upright, his head near my knee.

For some unexplained reason, he was fixated on me. I tried what I had been doing for weeks: making faces and sounds to get a reaction out of him.

The first few weeks of this was like performing a comedy routine to an audience of bricks. (Screaming bricks, specifically.) While ‘A’ has become more expressive capable of eye contact over time, there still hasn’t been a clear “call and response” between him and I.

I started opening my mouth wide and making a soft ‘ahh’ sound. After a few tries, he began opening his mouth too, and responded with a happy: ‘ahh’! His face then curled into what I’m going to call a smile.

Our first conversation!

This may not be interesting to most people reading this (nobody is reading this), as it’s a stereotypical moment that every parent experiences. But when it happens to you, it means everything in the world.

I cried, of course, because I’m like my mother in that way. And in response, ‘A’ immediately furrowed his brow, likely confused at what he did to make me upset.

Last week, a friend of mine asked me what the most unexpected part of my experience has been thus far.

I told him I was surprised that I love the baby phase!

To my understanding, many men love their children, but don’t like babies. I think that’s fine. If you find yourself in this camp, you push through this phase until you reach the other side.

I firmly believed I would be in this camp up until I met ‘A’ for the first time. I love this phase.