Finally, alone with my wife, my baby on the way, I could feel the three of us now all coming together. I felt a strange kind of power, of a new life about to be born on Earth, and it was amazing.

“Baby, I want to say something to you,” Maggie said. “I want to thank you for never giving up on this even though I know you wanted to. I want to thank you for who you are and for everything you’ve done to help us get here.”

I was holding one hand over Maggie’s heart and the other over Layla, and all I could say was, “No, baby, it was you who held us together. You are the brave one. Thank you, sweetheart, thank you so much.”

Maggie’s heart was beating steady and strong and the music was playing. We were moving through this and I could feel grace filling the room. It was beautiful, it was perfect.