A New Family Member

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If you look to the right of the page you’ll find the list of my all time top ten posts. Lurking at #6 is a piece from 2021 called Family And Music. This is actually a reworking of two previous posts from 2018, with an added footnote from 2022. It became something of a magnum opus and it contains a lot of my thoughts about why family relationships are important to us. Newer readers won’t have seen it but are welcome to try it out if they wish. A brief update on that piece: sadly we lost Dad in January 2023 at the grand old age of 95, but his memory lives on and is loved and cherished. You may have seen the post I wrote in his honour and reprised earlier this year.

The reason for today’s post is that on Tuesday we welcomed a new family member. My younger daughter, Ruth, gave birth to a daughter of her own, taking my total of granddaughters to three, and I couldn’t be more delighted. The new little one is called Sirena, which is a Spanish word meaning ‘serene’ or ‘siren,’ both good reasons for such a lovely name, but for Ruth and her husband Dean it has the added meaning of being translatable as ‘mermaid.’ Dean has two boys from a previous marriage and since they met Ruth they have given her the nickname of ‘mermaid,’ so this seems to me to be a wonderful choice of name.

I won’t bore you with the details of how this happened, but Sirena was born four weeks early, weighing just 5lbs 1oz, and has been in the ICU as a precaution since then. Mum and Dad have both been able to hold and feed her, though, and as all of the tests the hospital have done have been fine we are hopeful that they may all be going home soon. I thought I’d celebrate in my usual fashion by playing a few appropriate tunes.

They don’t come much better than this one:

Stevie Wonder wrote Isn’t She Lovely to celebrate the birth of his daughter Aisha, and it is just perfect: “isn’t she lovely, made from love” is such a beautiful line.

My second tune for today is one that reflects on a new birth from the position of a father wondering what the new arrival will inherit from its parents, and how their influence will impact on its life. The song is Marc Cohn’s Things We’ve Handed Down, and it is gorgeous:

This next one, Baby Mine, was originally written by Frank Churchill and Oliver Wallace for the Disney Dumbo movie, released in 1941, and was sung for the movie by Betty Noyes.  There are many versions of this lovely song of a mother’s unconditional love for her child, including one by Alison Krauss, but today I’m going with The Hound And The Fox and the version they recorded in 2017 for their album Moon Songs – Lullabies For Baby And Parents:

Beautiful, meaningful sentiments that have universal appeal, and written for an animated movie! The Hound And The Fox are Reilly and McKenzie Zamber, a husband and wife duo who make lovely music of their own, and have a nice line in cover versions too. They made this video to tie in with the live action remake of the movie which came out in 2019: the beautiful piano accompaniment is by Nathan Alef, who also played on the album version.

Just one more for today, and I’m closing with one of the songs I played in the previous post. This is another along the lines of a parent hoping that their little one will take their chance in life. Coincidentally, The Hound And The Fox have done a nice cover version, but for me the original is still the best:

Lee Ann Womack, with I Hope You Dance. As I said first time round I’m the world’s worst dancer but I can relate to the meaning the song gives it.

Something else I said in that previous post is, I think, worth repeating as a summary of the importance of family for us:

As we become adults, we build relationships of our own and, if we are blessed, we help to continue our own dynastic line. I have two wonderful daughters, and would like to think that I played a little part in helping them become the people they are today. though my ex-wife deserves the lion’s share of the credit for helping them become the caring, capable women they have turned out to be.

My two girls are extremely close and supportive of each other, and Ruth has always loved being an Auntie to Katy’s two girls. I think that relationship is about to become a two way thing, and I’m sure that Felicity and Verity will be excited about meeting their new cousin. No doubt that will be happening soon, once Sirena is out of the ICU, and I just know that I will be very moved to see the first pictures of them all together. But that’s what families are about, isn’t it: that bond that ties us and makes such a special part of the completeness of our lives.

I could go on, but I’ll probably get soppy and sentimental, and that would never do! See you again for Song Lyric Sunday 🤱

 

Family is everything

 

 

80 thoughts on “A New Family Member”

  1. In India, every milestone in a child’s life is cherished with unique cultural practices, and the teething ceremony holds a special place among them. Known in different regions by various names such as Annaprashana, Mukhe Bhaat, or Choroonu, this ceremony symbolizes the child’s transition from a milk-only diet to the first taste of solid food. While teething itself is a natural biological process, Indian customs have long intertwined it with spiritual, cultural, and familial significance.

    https://www.indianetzone.com/indian_customs_teething

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  2. One of our nieces was born 10 weeks early and came through it with flying colors. She will always be small for her age, but she is smart as a whip. Because she was so frail she was airlifted to a hospital two hours away by car, but her mum pumped milk and drove there every other day.

    Search for “Cardie” on my site. All will be well.

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    • She was actually due yesterday and this morning my daughter sent me a video of her gurgling happily in her cot. She has grown a fair bit in those four weeks and we don’t have any worries for her now: the hospital were brilliant both with her and my daughter.

      Thanks for that tip – I’m sure all will be fine with ours too 👍

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  4. Pingback: A New View Of July | Take It Easy

    • Thank you, Janet. It is a blessing, isn’t it, and I can’t wait to meet her when she eventually gets out of hospital. As she was four weeks premature they aren’t taking any risks with her.

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  7. welcome to Sirena and wow, I just loved the songs you shared for this celebration (and maybe some day she will make it here to see granddad’s songs for her entry into this world). I liked all of the songs and had no idea the stevie wonder one was for his daughter’s arrival – and it does have that joyful vibe that opened this post so well

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  10. I’m extremely happy for both you and your daughter, Clive. I knew I’d love being a grandfather, but it’s even better than expected. Our son and daughter-in-law are in the process of buying their first home, one that our fourteen-month-old grandson will grow up in.

    Great musical choices to celebrate this wonderful moment. I taught a few Serenas over the years, but never a Sirena. It’s a lovely name.

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  11. What a beautiful way to welcome li’l Sirena into the world, into the family, Clive! Big CONGRATULATIONS to all … parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins! I hope you’ll post a picture of her soon! As re the music … the only one I had never heard was “The Things We’ve Handed Down” and while I like the sentiment, the song didn’t really do a lot for me. I loved all the others, though, especially, as you might have guessed, my man Stevie’s!!! Congrats again, Clive!

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    • Thank you, Jill, for your wonderful words. This was one of your guesses, but I didn’t want to post this until we were reasonably sure that Sirena was going to be alright. These are still nervous times but she appears to be thriving. Pictures in due course, once she isn’t covered in tubes, but she is gorgeous!

      I’m glad you liked three of the songs – especially the first one! Shame about the Marc Cohn one, as I’m a huge fan of his music and have played that album a lot.

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    • Thank you, Marina, I’m glad you liked it and I appreciate your congratulations. I saw that it meant the same in Italian and it’s nice that yours is related to the theme too.

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  19. Wonderful news Clive, I bet you’re counting the hours till you’re able to see her. There’s simply nothing more exciting. I haven’t had chance to see the videos you’ve included yet, but just wanted to say congratulations!

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    • Thank you, Paul, your good wishes are appreciated. It could be a while yet before I meet her, depending on how long they want to keep her under observation. Hope you like the tunes when you get there 😊

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  20. Oh, that is such fantastic news, Clive. Congratulations on your new granddaughter! I cannot wait to hold my first granddaughter in my arms. I have to wait 2.5 more months.

    I love that you picked “I Hope You Dance”. What a beautiful wish to send along the journey of a newborn. Also, I love this song so much.

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    • Thank you, Erika, that’s very kind. I hope all goes well for yours, and hopefully not too early!

      I’m glad you liked that song, it’s one I’ve always loved since I bought the album. And the video is lovely.

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      • I hope so too. Since it is the first one (and so far everything goes perfectly well) the baby girl might show up rather later (at least when she and her mom are repeating history regarding me and my daughter). l am glad that Sirena seems to be doing well, even though she arrived four weeks early.
        Yes, so lovely! My best friend shared it once with me and since then I am in love with this song.

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      • Thank you, Clive. I see! In the end, it s not predictable. Our second one was pretty much on time, the last one earlier than the doctor said but perfect on time as I expected him to “show up”. Maybe kind of a pattern… we did not try a fourth time to prove it 😅

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    • Thank you. Yes they do have lovely names, all with delightful meanings. We’re keeping fingers crossed she is allowed home soon, but can understand the hospital wanting to be cautious given how early she arrived.

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