D: David (WR)

David

Having a child definitely promotes a life change. From the day I met Christina, continuing to when David was born, to the present we were now an us, no longer an I. It’s been a great ride so far.

David learned to talk early and a lot. Reading to him, telling him stories and as he grew older having discussions with him on all sorts of topics was the norm. We were there to support him in all his wants and needs. Like all parents and children, it wasn’t always perfect. I am the calmer one in the family and he always pointed out that I didn’t react fast enough when he got hurt. I just didn’t want to worry him. But try and explain that to a child. I’m sure there are more things we disagree upon that he can enumerate on. We still remain a strong family unit.

For the most part, we were and are sort of a team. We even named ourselves at one point. He was Detective Shaunk and was his assistant Hinches. I involved myself in things that he did (I tried to read all the books that he was reading in school, get involved with his game play, and follow a lot of his conversations that even for me were over my head) and he found things that I was doing that he involved himself with (soccer, though he didn’t completely care for it, playing musical instruments, science fiction/fantasy).

He and Christina had their own team and the three of us were yet another.

I tried to guide him with advice about the ways of the world from my many years of experience. He, in turn, tried to guide me as to the reality of the world through his teen and young adulthood’s framework of life. We learned to accept and tolerate each other’s perspectives.

Moving off to college didn’t change our relationship. David continued to call us and have chats with us frequently. He had grown into an independent man. It took him only a week to find Lara, his future wife, whom he is planning to marry this May. Both he and Lara have visited us, gone places together with us, and we also became good friends with her parents. The only thing separating us is two states (we on Long Island, NY and they in Massachusetts). With wedding plans and a new life in store for him the calls and visits are fewer as he does have a new teammate:

But we still remain there in all our team guises for support and love and hope to continue to be a part of both their lives as all of us continue to grow.