Juan

Today is my nephew Juan’s birthday. He is the youngest of my nephews and has turned 7 today. He was born while I was away in college, so I didn’t get to see him as a newborn the way I did with Silvi and Pedro. I did, however, get to see him in the womb since I went with Maus to one of her ultrasounds while she was pregnant. It was exciting to see my little nephew on that screen—a sneak peek before everyone else got to meet him.

I remember awaiting the news of Juan’s birth and hoping he might stay inside Maus a couple more days so he and I could share a birthday. But I guess he was ready to come out so he missed my birthday by 2 days. Close enough. I finally got to meet Juan the following month when I came home for Christmas. I’ve included here a picture of that first Christmas, as well as a picture from last Christmas. It has been nearly a year since that more recent photo, so even that one isn’t a good indicator of how big he is now.

I’m looking forward to the next time I see Juan. It has been over 4 years, and because he was so little when I last saw him, I’m hardly going to recognize him when we meet again, even though I’ve been seeing his photos through the years. I am excited about getting to know him better.