Maybe it was the Look Who's Talking movies or all the 3-month-old babies playing newborns on TV, but somehow I'd developed the idea that, at the very least, babies coo and gurgle right out of the womb. Not so, says Life.
Quickly I realized that Rain only communicated one way and one way only: crying. Of course I expected her to cry when she was displeased, but I didn't think that to express anything else she would just stare--even cats purr, you know?
Doesn't seem like a big deal, does it?
Well, imagine you have a demanding client at work. The most demanding client. This client expects you to provide her every need promptly and with a smile. If you claim to be too tired to meet her expectations or you don't understand what she wants, she will punish you immediately with cries so loud the police come (I'm not kidding; more on that later). She only communicates with you by yelling. Besides that, she remains silent. Now, how long would it be before you longed for any sound besides a yell? Exactly.
One day when Rain was about 5 weeks old, I put on Beatles music for her entertainment. I left her on her floor blanket to get something from the kitchen. When I was halfway to the kitchen, I heard it. I knew immediately it had to come from her, but had I imagined it? I danced back to where she was, and as she stared at one of her overhead toys, she did it again: she made a short cooing sound and stopped. I grabbed my camera and recorded a few more sounds before she fell silent again. I picked her up and told her right away how very happy I was, and if she could do a bit of chatting every day, well, it would mean a lot. I kissed her chubby cheeks so she would know how proud she made me, John, Paul, George, and Ringo.
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