Your Lineage

Following ancient patterns

our minds traced cycles

around the moon

to the moment that led

to the creation of you

Emerging from a mosaic

of twisting strands

sequencing proteins and possibility

passed through time and love

and aspiration

Life’s longing for itself

rooting through generations

of replicating recipes

for eye color and temperament

now uniquely yours

Alive with wonder

a brief blossom

held in this expansive tree

you are ultra rare

you are not a mistake

Photo: Alden with grandfather “Tango”

About this poem: Alden remains “undiagnosed;” by that I mean we still do not have an answer as to WHY his brain developed the way it did. In fact, the more he develops, surpassing expectations, the more perplexed his care team has become! As we continue to search for answers, we meet with geneticists and other specialists from around the country who are combing through our genomes. These conversations are intellectually interesting and emotionally exhausting. Whatever the genetic defects they search for, I want to feel that Alden is complete and wholly deserving to be as he is. Alden is in the realm of ‘ultra rare,’ perhaps completely unique. With unanswered questions, we are reaching the limits of current scientific exploration. Both medical mystery and playful toddler, Alden is a joyous addition to humanity. Our family will tend to him, and honor his beauty for as long as he is with us.