letters to our daughters ~ july

“Oh the thumb-sucker’s thumb
May look wrinkled and wet
And withered, and white as the snow,
But the taste of a thumb
Is the sweetest taste yet
(As only we thumb-sucker’s know).”

~ Shel Silverstein

My sweet girl,  when I think about you, about your childhood, your babyhood, there are so many things about you that come to mind.  One of these happens to be your fingers.  I couldn’t imagine writing these letters to you and not featuring them in a starring role at least once.  From the moment you were born, literally the very moment they handed you to me and I took in my first sweet breath of you, you have sucked your fingers (and I’m convinced that you were doing this before you were even born).  I was a thumbsucker myself (how old was I when I stopped you ask?  Well…we won’t talk about that…) so I relate pretty deeply to the need/feeling/comfort of this.  To me, seeing you like this, with those two fingers in your mouth, is as much a part of who you are as any part of your personality.  This is SO YOU.  You were 4 months old when you were first able to get those fingers in your mouth and keep them there.  I’m convinced that they are the reason why you’ve always been such a fantastic sleeper, and after two big brothers who relied on pacifiers, I felt that those fingers were an absolute Godsend.  As you’ve gotten older, the fingers mean either that you’re tired, or that you’re being pensive…taking things in from afar, assessing the situation or the world around you, thinking about things.  I love it when you sleep next to me at night; there is a sound, a finger-sucking sound that I find so calming, so sweet, so very much you.  I know I’ll never forget it, and I will always associate these memories with your baby and girlhood.

Your whole life, people have stopped us at stores, the library, the pool, at school, wherever we may be, and with memories brimming in their eyes, have said things like “my daughter used to suck her fingers, just like that”, or “I have a son that used to suck his fingers like that…he’s 20 now, away at college”.  I’m always taken by the dreamy look in their eyes, it’s ALWAYS there, and it’s so clear that they’ve just been taken back in time, to when their child was little, and are reliving the sweetness, the babyness, the sights/sounds/smells from when the grown-up child that they love so much was still little.  I can imagine myself 20 years from now, I’ll be in line at Target somewhere and I’ll see a child sucking their fingers and I too will be compelled to share my story with her mom or dad, and I will immediately be rushed back in time to these moments, these memories, these images of you in my mind.  I’ll feel happy, and a little bit bittersweet,  I’ll want to call you, wherever you are, and tell you.  I’ll want to say that I love you, and that I remember when you were little, and that I’m so proud of you, and that I love you…so much.  I just hope you won’t have to take your fingers out of your mouth to answer the phone…  :)

I love you Wren Alice

Love, mama

{ “fingers” | july, 2012 | nikon D700, iphone 3gs | lensbaby 2.0, 85mm 1.8, 50mm 1.8, instagram }

I’m thrilled this month to link you to an incredible photographer and wonderful friend, Emma Wood.  Her work is timeless, emotive, and absolutely exquisite; I’ve loved following along with her letters during this project and I know you will too.

Emma Wood | Emma Wood Photography