Letters to My Unborn Child: Get Excited

A long time from now, you’ll read this and hopefully understand. Until that day comes, this father can hopefully understand.

The moment your mom and I found out she was pregnant, there were so many emotions, but excitement overwhelms them all. After trying for so long, after so many failures, the gift of you came like Christmas morning. Your mother woke me up in the middle of the night to tell me the news…I’ve never had a better reason to wake up.

Excitement is a hard thing to describe but you can feel it with every fiber of your being. Butterflies in your stomach, goosebumps on your skin, heart beating out of your chest, wanting to get to the next moment so fast you forget to breath.

Excitement can bring out both good and bad things in yourself. Hope and self-doubt, wonderment and worry, all of these things shape who you are. But beware; anxiousness is just a shortcut to anxiety. Do your best to appreciate the moment, live in the now. Worrying about tomorrow just steals away today.

Early in your life, you’ll be excited for everything. Grandma’s cookies, puppy kisses, a game of tag, even a passing train’s whistle will seem like fireworks on the 4th of July. That childhood amazement is something I hope you never lose, but I know you will. For some reason, the requirements for excitement are forced higher and higher the older you get. Time has a way of fading bright and shiny things.

I write this at a time when I’m struggling to get excited for anything. Everyday life can weigh you down so much you can’t lighten up. Keeping your nose to the grindstone doesn’t allow you to smell the roses.

So my wish for you is the same thing I desire in myself: Get excited.

Enthusiasm is the key to success in anything you set out to achieve. Enthusiasm is something that attracts other people to you. Enthusiasm is hard to ignore.

It may be hard some days to find something to get excited for, but remember you may not have many days left. The sand is always falling from the hourglass, time is always running out. Appreciate the little things, embrace small victories.

An easy way to get excited is to try new things, no matter how small it may seem. From waking up 30 minutes earlier to meeting new people to (my personal favorite) eating the newest item on the fast food menu, change inspires excitement…and sometimes gas.

When you’re stuck in a rut or can’t escape chaos, bored or overwhelmed, take five deep breaths and don’t take them for granted. Realize life is special; life is a gift…that’s reason enough to get excited.      

Love, Dad