I had hoped my baby would be healthy.
We didn't know she was a girl until she appeared in the world 18 years ago. Healthy.
I had hoped she would have all functioning parts.
She did.
I had hoped she would have a good functioning brain.
I feared the retardation my brother has.
She had good function.
Once all the parts were here and worked, I hoped she would like to learn and love to read. She did.
Once I realized how much she loved school, I expected she would graduate high school.
She did.
I expected good grades. She got them.
I hoped she would make it through sober, intact, emotionally healthy.
She did.
What I didn't expect is the friendships.
I hoped she would make the kind of enduring, necessary, epic friendships that I have, that have kept me alive at various lows.
She has them.
Such close friends. Friendships that are nearly decades old now. Already. Whew.
Love. Laughter. Expectations. Limits.
I didn't expect it. But she has them.
Well done sweet girl...