For Chayse...and every perfect baby

We dream of the perfect baby
Conceived in love, born with love
after forty weeks
     ten fingers
     ten toes
     a healthy body
     a healthy mind.
We dream...
and sometimes we get
what we didn't expect-
the perfect baby
     too early
     too small
struggling to survive
capturing a place in our hearts
in our lives
and changing us forever.
Showing us that perfection
is there...
     in all the work
     in every setback
     in every snuggle
     in every smile
     in every heartbeat
     in every breath
changing forever
our idea
of what perfect is.

©Sherry-Lynn (Jamieson) Krull
Dec. 07, 1999