2.2 decades. 1 charmed life.

Broadcast News
London, ON
May 2016

In my mind's eye, he was just born - and in some ways, I'll always feel that way. Yet reality has a different way of looking at a child's life. Always rushing forward, always straining to reach adulthood, always moving at light-speed away from the little munchkin we drove home from the hospital, so nervous I had the hazard lights on the whole way.

Zach turns 22 today, and as much as he'll always be our son, our child, he isn't a child anymore. A subtle difference, perhaps, but an important one. And I couldn't be more proud of the adult he's becoming, the person that he is, and the roadmap that he's simultaneously building and travelling.

Ten years ago, I took this picture of him and wondered about the next year, the last non-teen year of his life. I called him smart, sensitive and caring then, and those words easily apply today, and then some. Everyone who knows him loves him. He's got a wonderful sense of humor, and is genuinely fun to hang around with. He's become a trusted big brother to Dahlia and Noah, always looking out for them. Okay, almost always. And when school and work beckon, he'll excitedly dissect his next project for you, then be the collaborative force on his team who actually pulls the disparate pieces together.

I can't predict his future now any better than I could a decade ago. But no one can - not for our kids nor for ourselves. Still, I do know he's doing a wonderful job figuring out his own path, using the gifts, traits and learnings that have already endeared him to so many.

Happy birthday, no-longer-little man. We love you very much. Only good things, today and every day.