Daughters: readers rejoice in them - In Your Own Words - Letter to the Editor

I'm often bewildered by what I see as my daughter's financial irresponsibility and her tendency to fall in and out of all-consuming relationships. I feel angry that she doesn't explain herself to me and irritated that she never follows my advice. But just when I'm convinced that she's irresponsible and self-centered, she'll do something unexpected that reminds me of what a good human being she actually is. Once she found shelves in someone's trash and carted them home because she knew I needed more space for my plants. Another time she took her younger brother to the circus because she knew I had to work. I always thought the hardest part of parenthood would be when my children were small, but I was wrong. The hardest part is standing back and letting my daughter live life her own way.

Yvonne Frink
Mountain Home, Idaho

The Best Part

We sit, knee to knee, sharing a grapefruit. Ali, 3, digs her spoon into the juicy flesh and laughs. Looking into her brown eyes, my mind drifts back to the moment when I first heard the three simple words, "It's a girl." I'm almost embarrassed to remember the intensity of my desire for a daughter, to recall how much I'd yearned to have a little girl. Ali waves her spoon for more, pulling me back into the present. Holly, her big sister, glides into the kitchen. She finds a spoon for herself and settles down beside us. I'm deeply grateful for this moment--one red grapefruit, three spoons, two daughters.

Laurie Everett
Arlington, Mass.

The Unexpected Part

Oh how I wanted a little girl I could bake cookies with! My first child was a boy, but I was delighted to have such a healthy, beautiful baby and soon became pregnant again. I was so sure my next child would be a girl that I knit a pink sweater. But again I had a boy. Two years later, I had another boy, so I gave up on having a daughter. A friend once told me that God may not be on time, but he is never too late, and now, almost 40 years after my third son was born, I understand what he meant. I've been blessed with two wonderful daughters-in-law, and both of them call me "Mom."

Maurisa Solomon
Bonita Springs, Fla.

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