Since we (or at least I) have been on the subject of lullabies lately, I thought it might be a good time to share a lullaby I wrote for Rachel when she was a newborn. It’s very sappy, but it meant a lot to me as a new mother because it expressed those new mother feelings so well for me.

When I was pregnant with Rachel my husband was listening to the Beatles quite often. One song that stuck with me was “I will.” After Rachel was born, the melody was in my head a lot so I found myself humming it to her. Finally one night I wrote some new words. Don’t laugh. Remember…I was in that “born again” stage of motherhood.

(to the melody of “I will”, The Beatles)

1. Who knows how long I’ve loved you?
You know I love you still.
Will I love you for a lifetime?
Even longer, yes I will.

Chorus:
Love you Forever and Forever
Love you with all my heart
Love you whenever we’re together
Love you when we’re apart

2. You are my gift from heaven,
my precious little girl.
You’re my magic.
You’re my laughter
and you magnify my world.

3. Your Daddy loves you dearly.
He tells me every night.
You’re a dazzling burst of sunshine.
You make everything all right.

4. And when you are much older,
a woman, not a girl,
please remember what I’ve told you.
You’re a gift. You are a treasure.
and you give us so much pleasure.
Share youself then with the world.

It’s funny, these words sound so cliche to me now. But at the time……they seemed to express this new world I was discovering. A world with new magical dimensions. So moved was I by my “own” song, I called my mom and my sister and sung it to them. They were polite, but I’m sure were not nearly as impressed as I was by my words.

Now I occasionally sing the song to my girls. Sometimes Rachel doesn’t want me to sing it, but other times she lets me. When she does let me, I think she listens more carefully to the words than she used to, with an interested and slightly puzzled look on her face

I imagine that look of puzzlement will turn to horror when I’m still singing it to her 10 years from now.

By the way, if you think my experience of new motherhood was only sugary sweet, read this. It will give you a more balanced view of my experience.