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The House is Quiet

Loving My Niece While Waiting My Turn at Parenthood

By Mark Stackpole

The house is quiet.

The TV is blaring with some sporting event or other. The dogs are barking because they want to go out, or want to be fed, or want to play. I never really know with them. I can hear the neighbors arguing from over the fence. The refrigerator hums in the kitchen. The little fountain in our backyard gurgles with enthusiasm.

But the house is quiet.

The light saber lies on the futon in the office because the Jedi knight has gone home. The Green Goblin action figure awaits the arrival of his mortal enemy, but our hero Spider-Man has left the building. I can sit down at the computer and finally write this only because the Web browser is no longer pointed to Disney.com.

My niece and god-daughter has gone home. She has been loaded into the car seat and is headed home with her Scooby and her Shaggy. Is there any greater gift than the unfiltered love of a 5-year old girl?

I am the finish line to her sprint, and she rewards me with a giant hug, sloppy kiss and heartfelt, "I love you." My grinchy heart grows three sizes, and she does not hear the catch in my voice as I tell her that I love her so much, too. And then, she is off. There are cartwheels to be done, bad guys to be defeated and pages to be colored. I watch. I laugh. I love. And a few hours (though it feels like only minutes) later, she is ready to go home.

Want to see more?

• Confessions of the Childless Guy: Learning to Be a Friend to New Parents
• Fuzzy Blue Hippo: A Letter to My Unborn Child
• Keeping the Love Alive When You're Trying to Conceive
• Talk about it!