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Guest Blogger: Karyn Thurston of "Girl of Cardigan"

by 2 February 03, 2014 10 Comments

by Karyn Thurston, "Girl of Cardigan" The catbird finds herself the highest place, the most prominent perch, and claims it. She lands herself safely, out of reach but perfectly in sight, and from here she sings out her song, mews out her mocking laugh to the cat below, lets the sun bounce off her feathers and the world below take her in. You, little bird- you belong in such a place.

You belong closely tethered, breathing your sweet baby breath on my shoulder as we look and listen and sing. You belong here, where I can feel you reach and retract, watch your fingers pointing, and whisper to you the names of the things you seek. You belong in this seat, your catbird seat, where the advantage is yours as you borrow my height and use it to conquer friend after friend after friend, winning them with your unstoppable smile, wowing them with your persistent, babbling song.

We are adventurers, you and I, and I love these moments of oneness with you. I love to watch you explore and feel and snuggle and grow. I can see you discovering, and it is my privilege to share this space with you. Here I am your witness and your teacher, and so I also am catbird-seated - my best space, my luckiest place.

A man on the sidewalk gawks as we pass him, asks what you're doing back there, aren't you uncomfortable, doesn't it make me tired to carry you? You answer him with your loud, joyful "Uh-huh!" greeting, the one you use for friends only, the one you use for everyone, and he is transformed into something soft and smiling and undeniably won. He reaches out a hand to high-five you, and smiles at me: "Great kid you've got there." And with that, all of his questions are answered, and we carry on.

You are not always easy to carry, tiny squirming bird, and you continue to grow. But I am grateful, so grateful, for the ability to carry you, to seat you high and safe and comfortably just where you belong. I am grateful to abandon the wheels and hoods and distance of your stroller, tie you high up on my shoulders and chase our adventures up stairs and through doorways, over miles and into hearts. I am grateful to tuck you close in to me, to the body that built you, to the love from which you were made. I am grateful, little bird, to keep you in that place of best advantage, tucked snuggly into your Catbird seat, and to listen to you sing.

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10 Responses

Candy

March 10, 2016

Beautifully written! It speaks out to all baby wearing mamas and hopefully more mamas will consider carriers.

Hannah

March 10, 2016

Such a lovely post!

LeeAnne

March 10, 2016

Beautiful words! I love wearing my son and these words do justice to a mama who loves baby wearing! I am looking for a carrier to do back carries and am going to look into this one! It’s beautiful and looks as though her little one can see above mamas shoulders!! Yay!

beth

March 10, 2016

We are lucky to have met Karyn, too. LOVE this post :)

Sarah T

March 10, 2016

Love this!

Laura Thurston

March 10, 2016

Karyn is the best mommy blogger ever! I love each and everything she has written! Her daughter and my son are
so lucky to have her in their lives!

Don Hart

March 10, 2016

Oh Wow! What a powerful expression of the intimacy of mother and child!

Rachel Davis

March 10, 2016

Great writing…as always!

Judy Serface

March 10, 2016

As a mom from the “stroller generation,” reading these beautiful words opens my eyes to a whole different world of mommy/baby closeness. Wish we had had these options then, and I’m excited to be trying some of them out now as grandma!