for Henry, great nephew-to-be

You will not remember this by
the time you are old enough to remember,
but you should know that while you

were still cooking inside your mama,
you were already adored by people
you would grow to call by name:

Mom, Dad, grandmas and grandpas,
aunts and great aunts, cousins first,
second, third—so many cousins—

though we had seen you only in
fuzzy black and white scans, your
little face mooshed up inside your

mama, whose voice you already knew,
and your papa, who couldn’t wait
to hold you and snuggle you,

the two who named you before you
landed on this strange shore to breathe
air and eat food, to discover your hands

and feet! Such amazing feet! To one
day walk on those feet, and run,
to become your own person,

Henry, whom we cannot wait to
meet and hug and talk to and laugh
with. Know always that you are

a treasure to the people you will
come to know as family, that you
have enlarged ours by one—but

by so much more than one because
love cannot be measured in simple
digits. It is infinite; it goes forever,

as do you, heybabyheybabyheybaby,
tucked tight into our hearts for all
time, beyond time, lucky you,

lucky us.