Li la la

The third rock from the sun is what the 3rd born are, and that is Li la la. After two kids and seven years from the second one as parents we realised we knew very little about everything in raising kids.

The first born gets the most attention, because they have a fresh set of parents who start out knowing everything about raising a child. First borns could rightly feel a bit suffocated with attention.

The second born gets a bit less attention, but benefits from a parents experience. Less mothering and fathering experimentation that goes wrong.

Ah, the third born and after seven years of the second. Mmmm. The good thing is that we had two qualified babysitters cum entertainers. That is where Li la la comes in.

My brother was a third born. He turned out to be the magnet of our family. The ones after and before sort of were attracted to him as the center of family gravity. And that is where Li la la is. The center of gravity for our family.

Li la la is the caring one. The littlest, but the most concerned about everybody else.

Ah, did I say that the third born got the google attitude of the father and the busy bee nature of the mother.

Artist, entrepreneur, psychoanalyst, model, rock star, heavy metal tree hugger, Harvard grad and President of the United States all in one neat packaged bundle.

She worked more jobs that Steve jobs and has as much ambition to boot. An inventor, dreamer and was the angel caregiver to her grandfather. She was alone by his side hand on his face whispering the many love you good byes while I a world away cried and watched on. She gave me comfort and words of a grown up as I were the small child crying who lost something most dear.

Now here she is with her own soon to be first born and I will venture to give no advise other than enjoy your journey as a parent.

It’s a wonderful yet scary feeling to experience the cycle of generation. To see your own kids having kids. To realise they are probably smarter and more experienced than I was at that time.

All of those apprehensions melt away as soon as you see the little faces and later little words and stories. That is how my dad must have felt.

Oh, Li la la, was her pronunciation of her own name as soon as she learned to speak. Who knows what Li la la’s little one will say about her/his own name?