Dear Child

 This is a bit of a belated post but we've just been so busy since your arrival! You were born on 10 April. We went into hospital on 9 April and your mother was induced into labour. After getting an epidural, we thought things would calm down. It was around midnight when we were about to go to sleep. Then a nurse checked your mother and noticed your heart rate was dropping, and her blood pressure was also dropping. They made a decision to have a caesarian and pushed your mother to the operating theatre. It all happened so fast - one minute I was getting ready to sleep, the next I was told to put on the blue gown and hat and to follow the bed being pushed out of the room. When we arrived at the operating theatre, they said your mother was ready for a natural birth, and after just two pushes, out you came. With everything happening so fast, it was hard to register the the sight of you. We held you on our arms, but it was still so surreal. It was almost like we had gotten used to carr...

 A few weeks ago I visited my father at the cemetery. I wondered what he would say and how he would react upon knowing you were a boy. In Chinese culture, having a boy is preferred as it is deemed to pass on the family bloodline and surname. I started imagining how he would treat you if he was still around. About a week ago, I was driving home with your mother and we had just passed my mother's home, where I saw her walking slowly back home. It was night time, so I assumed she was returning from the pokies. I started thinking about what life would be like right now if my father hadn't passed away and if I hadn't of gotten married. I would be returning home, seeing my dad watching tv on the sofa. I would ask him where mum was and he would say the club. He would then ask me if I was hungry, as he always did, and offer to make me some food. Even though he passed away almost two years ago now, memories of him still come up from time to time. The intensity of these memories can ...

As if being born after a global pandemic wasn't bad enough, about two weeks ago now Russia invaded Ukraine and started a war. For the time being, no other Western countries are getting involved, but if it escalates this could become World War 3. I hope I'm not speaking too soon, but you're very lucky to be born in Australia.

This morning I took your mother to her 20 week ultrasound scan. In addition to the headaches she's been getting, she has started getting stomach cramps and numbing in her legs. These are all normal symptoms of pregnancy we are told. During the ultrasound, I asked to find out the gender. The doctor asked us to guess, and we both said boy. She said we were right and gave us this cool congratulations card! So now that we have a better idea of who you are, we can start planning for things a bit better. When my father was in hospital I told him I wanted to name my son Kobe Henry, and he got very emotional and cried. It's not set in stone yet, but I am fairly sure that is the name I want to go with. I chose Kobe to name you after my favourite basketball player, because he represents determination, competitiveness and resilience. I want you to have these values as a person. I have a feeling your mother will try to give you the easiest life possible, and whilst I understand that comes ...

  That's the best image we have of you yet, from the ultrasound on 29 September 2021. You were moving around a lot, so I think maybe you will be quite an active baby. I still find it hard to believe you are inside there, growing and waiting to come out. I'm sure by the time you read this everything will just be historical and not hold much meaning to you, but we are living in interesting times right now. Towards the end of 2019, a virus which we now call Covid-19 broke out in Wuhan China. It spread globally quite fast, but luckily your mother and I were able to still hold our wedding in February 2020. Then lockdowns in Australia began happening in March 2020. The virus probably isn't as bad as the media makes it out to be, but it does appear to be quite dangerous to the elderly, so a lot of countries entered lockdowns where people were required to stay home. Fortunately I have a government job and your mother also has jobs where she can work from home. On a personal level, ...

Today we saw you for the first time. We saw you at an ultrasound and you were bigger than we expected. The lady said you were 10 weeks along, but we thought it was less. I felt very emotional when I saw you on the screen. When a life changing event like this happens, your mind plays tricks on you, leading you to be somewhat in denial. However, when proof is there on screen, those tricks no longer work and you realise the reality of it - it is real, and it is actually happening. We don't know if you're a boy or girl yet, so we haven't given you a name yet, but we do have some names in mind. For now your nickname is Ping Pong, because we saw you on the same day as Hyuna's song Ping Pong was released. I always thought I would be able to replicate the life my parents gave me, but technology has changed the world so much it would be impossible. Whilst I grew up with antennae tv and landline telephones, you will grow up with YouTube and smart phones. Everything happens so fas...