Be Bold (But Still Be Safe!)

I realize now that I have always been by-the-rules type of person and I think I might have been happier if I was willing to strike my own path a bit earlier in my life... to do things that scary and new. Now I don't mean smoking and drinking alcohols and BASE jumping off cliffs. I mean trying something new even though I might fail, talking to people even though I might stumble and feel silly, chasing more hopes and dreams... even if they might not become a reality.

Identity

For most of my childhood I always felt like an outsider. Part of it was because I was the child of immigrants in area where there weren't many Chinese families. Too American to be Chinese, too Chinese to be American, I strove to avoid being lumped into large categories that didn't fit me. Instead of piano or violin, I picked saxophone. Instead of tennis or soccer, I played ice hockey and did aggressive inline rollerblading (I doubt you know what that is). Anyways. I just wanted you know, that is ok if you ever feel like you don't quite fit-in. That eventually you will find yourself and your place in the world.

Be reliable, be flexible

I think people should be true to themselves, but they should also have some degree of flexbility. I think one of my major weakness is that I'm slow to adapt to changes on the fly. I have difficult changing tracks if my day's plans go off the rails and I didn't anticipate it in advance. I hope you can still be seen as as relatively reliable, and consistent person... just not as rigid as I sometimes am.

Advantageous

Your mother and I are doing our best to make sure you grow up in an environment better than the one we did. Just like our parents (your grandparents) did the same for us. That means better nutrition (less sugar), better posture and flexibility for health, better sleep habits, etc... I pre-apologize if this seems a bit annoying for you growing up.

Virtual/Digital Life

The world is becoming increasingly virtual and digital these days. While I think this offers many advantages in staying in touch with people. I also think it can be a trap as well. It is easy to send a short text, make friends on the internet, play games with strangers... but it also in my opinion slightly less satisfying. Making the effort to actually talk to people, meet them in person, to make lasting relationships in real life can be harder, with more mistakes made along the way... but I think in the end that are more valuable. Someone you make friends with online in a few hours can just as easily disappear from your life.

People often retreat to the internet to make friends or get no-string-attached friendship, but I think that is a sort of escapism. The digital world is a would without complications, but it is also without depth.

You are growing so fast

Already too big for your bassinet in the pack and play. And giggles and smiles all around

You sure eat a lot

Nom nom nom nom.... zzzzzZZZZZzzzz