Merge

I’m driving the kids home from school with Lydia in the back seat passenger side, Aidan in the middle, and Naomi on the driver’s side. They always sit with Aidan in the middle, I asked Aidan why by could not quite decipher the reason. This being due to both his English language skills and him being eight. Lydia asks me for my phone and I pass it back. I figure she wants to play a game on my phone. A minute latter she is talking the phone, arranging for Naomi to go with her to a birthday party she’s been invited too later that afternoon. And with that I am completely and totally reminded of Yang.

While it is temping to say one of the kids is more like her mom or more like her dad we are constantly reminded that they are a mix. A mix of Yang, myself, and their own secret sauce. Yes, Aidan is quiet and diligent like me but he also has his mom’s skill to get the most out of any situation. Lydia is an organizer and social butterfly like her mom but also has a bit of creative side which I like to think comes from me. Elisa is both extremely playful and pretty serious about what she wants (mostly ice cream).

I remember telling Yang before we had kids that I was not so interested in another me, that would be kind of scary. But the idea of having “us” as a kid was pretty cool. And 10 or 12 years after that original conversation it still is cool. Real cool.