Elixir Of Love

When I read adoption/parenthood books I always find great suggestions on how to promote attachment, and of course, as the nerd parent I am, I always make sure to learn this tips and apply them.  Every time I do so, I used to feel like I was making this special potion to make my little daughter love me, you know, like making an elixir of love.

But then I had my ankle injury, and I had to accept that I wasn’t going to be able to hold her in my arms for two weeks straight and slowly I saw her getting used to my mom, my aunts and everybody else but me, and I felt like the lover when she sees her loved one kissing and hugging somebody else, I was jealous and frustrated because there was nothing I could do about it, and I settled on thinking, I’ll start over again when we go back home.

Well, the two weeks have gone by, and now that I’m mobile again I’ve seen that she got very used to being with me the whole time, you know I couldn’t move, so I was by her side ALL THE TIME and it did some effect on her. Now she looks for me when I’m not around, and she knows I’m the one she’s got to whine to, she knows I’m the one who cares for her.

So now I don’t think about that love elixir like something to make her love me, because I know love is something that you cannot infuse on someone, and she won’t probably ever love me the way I love her, I see it now as a way to let her know, that just like her daddy, even though neither one has a blood link to me, they both are the most precious gifts God has given me and that I love her so much and that I will always be there for her, to soothe her when she’s hurt, to feed her when she’s hungry, to hear her when she needs a friend, to hug her just because, to cheer her when she’s frustrated, and just to love her unconditionally just because I’m her mommy.