Littleman loves books. He used to struggle to sit still to listen to the words and would make us flip through books quickly so that he could point at the pictures. Now, he’ll happily sit on our laps and listen as we read to him each night before bed.
Recently, my mom found a bunch of books that she had kept from when my younger sister and I were kids. She brought us a pile of Robert Munsch books, which were my sister’s favourite. If you don’t know his stories, most of them are fun, cute and quirky. Littleman especially loves Mortimer, which has a silly little song he likes us to sing.
Well, the other night I found one that really knocked me off my feet. The book is called Love You Forever. If you don’t know it, it’s about a mother watching her son grow up. Throughout his life, she cradles him in her arms while singing an amazingly sweet song to him. I read it to Littleman and by the end of the book I was sobbing.
I vaguely remember the book from when I was younger – I probably read it to the kids I babysat as a teenager – but it’s meaning was definitely lost on my back then.
When I did some research and discovered the story behind the book, it hit home even more. The sweet song in the book was written in memory of Robert Munsch’s two stillborn babies.
It’s possible that I would have reacted the same way to the book even if I hadn’t suffered a miscarriage recently. As a parent, I found it to be a really powerful story. But then again, my recent experience has coloured my reactions to everything so it’s hard to know for sure. Either way, while this book is definitely a keeper, I think I’m going to have to stay away from it for a while.
Another bun (in the oven)? 