Page 68 of When Forever Stays
Rosaline opens her eyes, then coos up at him. He raises his face and looks at all the adults in the room with his mouth shaped in an O. “I think she likes me.” He bounces on his seat, and I lift Rosaline off him.
“My turn,” West says, reaching for her and taking her gently.
Olivia walks over to the couch and sits down, resting her head against Dana’s. “I can’t believe my little sis is a mommy now.”
“Me neither,” Dana says, looking up at Rosaline in West’s arms.
“I’m so grateful we get to do life together and be mamas together. Just like when we played house when we were little girls.”
Dana starts crying, and I grab a bunch of tissues off the side table and hand them over to her.
“Why am I crying?” Dana asks.
“Because your hormones are going crazy after bringing a beautiful, tiny life into the world,” Olivia answers, rubbing up and down Dana’s back as she blows her nose.
“I guess that makes sense.” Dana chuckles, her tears slowing down.
This is yet another humbling moment, being surrounded by people who will love my little family almost as much as I do. God is not only a God of forgiveness but grace upon grace. Giving us far more than we could ever deserve.
There’s another knock at the door, and I look to Dana and Rosa to see if they know of anyone else coming today. Caleb plans on coming down next week, and Dana’s parents said they’ll be over a little later once they get home from their cruise. The Woodhouses are visiting family in the states and won’t be back for another week. Both women shrug. West, Olivia, and Grayson went home a while ago, so unless they left something behind, I don’t know why they’d come back so quickly.
When I open the door, I’m beyond surprised.
“Oscar? Ashley?” I ask.
Ashley looks at me sheepishly. “The moment you called and told me the baby was here Oscar booked us the quickest flight, and here we are. I told him you’d want time to settle in before we barged in, but he insisted.”
Oscar doesn’t look one bit perturbed. He shrugs. “I’ve never been a big brother before.”
I grab my son and pull him against me in a tight embrace.
It’s been a slow process, getting Oscar to fully accept me as his dad and learn how to trust me. Especially with all the bumps on our journey. But God has been working on both of us, and I couldn’t be more grateful that he is here right now and that he was the one who wanted to be here for the huge moment in my and Dana’s lives.
Oscar and Ashley are each carrying something; Ashley has a basket and Oscar holds a gift bag. When they notice me eyeing them, Oscar lifts up the bag and says, “For the baby.”
Ashley lifts up the basket and says, “For the mama.”
“Let them in!” Dana shouts.
Ashley and Oscar follow me inside. Rosa continues to bounce little Rosaline. Dana slowly tries to stand while grimacing.
“Just relax,” Ashley says, carefully helping Dana back onto the couch.
“I don’t want to be rude to our guests,” Dana replies.
“Stop it. We’re not guests. We’re here to help. See?” Ashley points to the basket. “I made this for you. It’s a postpartum basket. It holds the same things I used to recover after having Oscar.” She leans down and says in a mock whisper, “And he wasa ten pounder.” This brings a laugh out of Dana, and her grimace turns into a smile…then more tears.
“Thank you.” She reaches up for a hug, and Ashley sets the basket on the table and hugs my wife as if it’s the most natural thing in the world. And in our world, it is.
“You are very welcome. Now.” She claps her hands together. “What do you need done?”
Oscar has already taken Rosaline out of Rosa’s arms and is walking around the living room, gently bouncing her and whispering down to her. I have no idea what he’s saying, but seeing the love in his eyes as he looks down at his baby sister, I can’t help but smile and thank God once again for the blessings He’s poured over me.
Without Dana asking anything of Ashley, Ashley goes into the kitchen and helps Rosa get the meal together.
Right after we finish up our meal, Dana’s parents arrive, and Olivia, West, and Grayson return. Crew comes over right after his shift. In less than an hour, our entire family—other than my brother Caleb—is in our home, bustling about, and helping in any way they can.
Rosaline is passed around slowly, each person not wanting to hand her over to the next. It’s a day filled with laughter, joy, and an endless stream of oohs and aahs.
I sit on the couch, my little girl finally in my arms again. Everyone except Oscar and Ashley are gone. As I stroke Rosaline’s soft cheek, I pray out loud. “Thank you for this beautiful little girl and my beautiful wife. Thank you for our family and the ways they’ve pushed us to become better versions of ourselves. Please continue to bless Dana and me with patienceand understanding so we raise our family with You at the center. Guide us and help us to honor You in all we say and do. Thank you for Oscar and Ashley and the relationship we’ve built from the ashes of our past. Thank you, Father, for being so good. Amen.”
Dana sits down next to me. “I love when you pray,” she says with a yawn.
Ashley looks over at us, a smile on her face. Oscar sits on the floor, resting his head against the couch. My worlds colliding could have easily brought nothing but destruction. Instead, God worked my failures for His good.
Rosaline’s tiny mouth opens with her own silent yawn, and she nuzzles into me. Dana rests her head on my shoulder, and I rest my other hand on my son’s shoulder. My blended family embraces the silence. With my heart full of hope and gratefulness, I thank God once again for this life I don’t deserve but that He’s given me anyway.