The Daily Squishy--Beginnings: Gabrielle Rae Montgomery-Kuhn

This is late on the draw, but my sister Maria gave birth to her first child a few weeks ago, a beautiful little girl. I will call her "Ella" as "Gabby" is not my first choice of a nickname. When she was born, we were too busy worrying about the complications my sister suffered after labor to really reflect on her arrival. But, my sister is fine, thanks to trained doctors and all those who give blood, and we can rejoice that we get to live in a world where both my sister and her beautiful daughter thrive and grow.

One of the reasons I am so late posting this is because second year law has taken hold of my life with a vengence. I determined I would be hyper involved this year and it has come with a price. While I try to figure out how to balance my study obligations with my external commitments, I am so grateful for my husband. He has worked twelve hour days, done all the laundry, the shopping, the home care and still finds time to spoil me with extravagent surprises, like the 3rd generation iPhone that is now, inexplicably, mine. I love you, Baby. You take care of me so well.

I would blog about the townhall-style debate we just watched (and how I waived my fists around and cheered when Obama finally BROUGHT it) but this is a post fundamentally about third generation members, and my little niece is the star of the show.

I will say this, though, having a niece has brought to my attention all the bad in the world that I wish I could fix before my niece grows up. She was born a few days into what my Corporations Law professor called the "world-wide economic melt-down"!!! And the economy crisis is just one of many fundamentally difficult issues we face. If I could choose the leaders of the world she will inherent, I would staff it full of people like Barack Obama. Men who don't fear intelligence and discourse, women who value diversity and don't make idols of hate and bigotry. I can't shape her world but I can be a vital part of it. I hope I can show her by example what it means to be an engaged citizen, to educate yourself on issues and be an advocate for others. She gives me something to look forward to: the future.