Xavier
(5 years later)
"Brandon, eat your vegetables," Scarlet told our oldest son, who was resisting the peas in his lunch. I chimed in, trying to lighten the mood, "Come on, Brandon, you know mom's anger, don't you?" I winked at him playfully, and he begrudgingly ate his vegetables. Scarlet then asked me to hold Jason while she tended to the other children.
I held my four-month-old son, Jason, in my arms, watching him with a mix of love and sadness in my heart. Scarlet had left in a hurry to tend to our other children, leaving me to take care of little Jason. As the father of four children now, I had grown more comfortable and confident in handling them, but my heart still ached for the one we had lost.
As I cradled Jason in my arms, I marveled at his deep ocean-blue eyes, just like
