Small Miracle

Baby is working hard on her balance, carefully side-stepping from the sliding-glass door to the kitchen cabinets, and then around a corner to in front of the sink. She barely touches the surface in front of her sometimes, and moves with greater and greater ease by the day. She crawled over my legs several times today, first upstairs and later in the kitchen. She has said, “Mommy,” “Daddy,” “doggy,” and – today – “Jesus.” I’d shown her a picture of Mary with baby Jesus on a couple of occasions but was more than a little surprised to hear her repeat his name this morning. She said it more than once, but I still doubted what I’d heard. I told my wife the story, and she definitely doubted it. I suggested bringing baby in front of the Byzantine print in the dining room. She did. “Jesus,” said baby, simple as that.