The blink of an eye...

Life changes in the blink of an eye. Yes, it's cliche. And cheesy. And true.

Exactly two weeks ago, my daughter made her entrance into this world in grand fashion: in the back of a speeding ambulance. For the next two days in the hospital, it was hard to take my eyes off of my greatest creation. One need not be religious or spiritual to still appreciate the miracle of life.

I was especially in awe of her delicacies. Her soft skin, her fragile frame, her tiny little fingers and toes. I half-expected her to come out in a box entitled: "Handle With Care."

Two weeks is not a very long time in the grand scheme of things. It's like a figurative blink of an eye in my life. Hell, I have tasks on my to-do lists that have lingered for months. But for Kya, it is a lifetime. It's all she knows. And in that half month, I've personally witnessed an incredible transformation in her. Her face and frame have become fuller. Her eyes have begun to focus on things - including me - and stay open for longer periods.

I've even learned how she communicates, through three cries: Feed Me, Change Me, Hold Me. To know that I have a one in three chance of always satisfying her needs is quite reassuring - never have my odds been that good with another female.

And every time my eyes close and open again, it's as if there's yet another evolution taking place within her. Every experience for her is novel and groundbreaking. And every time I lay witness to it, I feel the same way.

Tonight, I decided to take the night shift and give Missy the night off. It gave me a chance to slow down her evolution before my very eyes. It also gave me a chance to appreciate the speed of my own life. As a child, it felt like it took forever to turn 18. Now 18 is almost forever ago.

One day, Kya will be 18. And I'll feel like it happened in the blink of an eye.

Makes me not want to close them. Which, at least for tonight, I won't.