Max McAlister's Feet At 2 Months - Renae's Oldest Child
It was 30 years ago today. In a suburban hospital. Back when you didn’t fully know if the child entering your world was a boy or a girl.
Her brother arrived over 15 months earlier. His delivery had been a pain-filled 17 plus hour ordeal. I was hoping this child would arrive with a little shorter drama. She did.
I’m unsure how long it was, but I was 24 years old and just like that – I now had my complete and perfect family. A wife I loved passionately. A son, our firstborn. Now, a daughter. She completed the circle for me. For our family.
A husband. A wife. A son. A daughter. Two kids. Two cars. All those proverbial American dreams seemed to be falling into place.
Today, it seems so long ago. Some would say, “Well, it was a long time ago! Thirty years.”
Every old person tells you how quickly time flies.
Every teenager tells you how time drags by.
Perspective is in the eye of the beholder. Today, she turns 30. I’m now 54.
And more thankful for her entrance into my life than ever before.
Her brother has a baby daughter, my first granddaughter – Kinsley. Fitting that now I’m holding another little girl, singing into her ears and ofttimes remembering a younger man with a little girl named Renae Marie.
Life has a way of happening. No exam was given. No classes taken. At 24 my wife and I had a daughter. November 30, 1981.
It was 30 years ago today. My life – thankfully – has never been the same.
Happy Birthday, Renae Marie Cantrell McAlister.
Love,
Dad
@RandyCantrell is the proud father of Renae
Other posts I’ve written about a father’s view of his daughter:
(you really should check these posts just for the photos)
• Her 26th birthday blog post
• Her 28th birthday blog post
• When A Daughter Marries (perhaps my most famous “father” post)
Renae and me
