Faces

Since having a baby, I've realized that I've never really noticed people's faces before. Sure, I recognize the well-known faces of family and friends and the familiar faces of acquaintances, but I've never really studied faces the way I have since Eric's birth. I could look at his face all day and all night not withstanding physical demands like sleeping and hitting the bathroom. I have etched into my memory how he furrows his brow when burrowing into my breast as if to say, "How dare you make me work so hard for my food, Mommy!" I wonder what he is thinking as he scrunches up his forehead, and I cherish the little "Os" he makes with his mouth. His big blue eyes are open more now, and he looks at me and tracks me. I love the time we spend just looking at each other. I also love his little face when he is howling for food or a diaper change. Forehead wrinkled, eyes sealed shut, mouth open as wide as it goes, tongue quivering...it somehow reminds me of a lamb bleating, just louder. It shifts within nanoseconds. It is such a sad, pathetic little face that breaks my heart. Then, he shifts back to that peaceful, eyes closed, chubby cheeked look when he starts eating. After howling like that, he sounds like a baby dragon when he eats. Wheezing, snorting; I fully expect him to breathe fire. And then he settles in and his breathing evens out, and he gets down to the business of eating. Eyes open and he gazes at me and we study each others' faces. When he's finished, he literally smacks his lips, and it is the sweetest, cutest sound. My most favorite look is when his eyes are open and he's got an open mouth with a half grin as he's searching for the source of his next meal.
So what does all this have to do with other people's faces? Since Eric's been born, I can literally see the "babyness" in each face I encounter. It's a strange thing, but I'm able to get a real sense of what each face looked like as a sweet, innocent little baby. I appreciate each face as I detect the not-quite-hidden baby fat that hopefully none of us loses. The sweet look in each set of eyes as they look into my eyes, each of us searching for that human connection. I look at faces and take the time to really look at the person in front of me, giving them my complete attention. I'm softer. I'm able to see the innocence in each face.
My sweet baby hasn't really done anything since his been born other than eat, poop, cry, and sleep a little, but he's already made the world a better place simply by being. He's brought a little peace into the world by helping his mom really look at faces and see the sweetness in each one.