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We Are Having a Baby!

Estimated reading time: 11 minutes, 35 seconds
Jan, Jon and Richard

Home With Jan

Exiting the Prospect Park subway station, I thought about calling Jan, but the first payphone I passed was in use. Crossing Flatbush Avenue, my pace intensified despite my backpack and a shopping bag of printed materials I was bringing home. I had only been gone for three days, but it felt as if it had been forever. Turning left from Washington Avenue onto Sterling Street, I saw Jan walking towards me. Unable to run, I took giant strides to reach her as soon as possible.

“I missed you,” Jan yelled as we met.”

“I love you!”

“Me too!”

Hugging and kissing, we moved as one slowly down our block. 

“Can I carry anything?”

Despite being exhausted, I said no. 

“As Jan opened the entrance door, I did my best but inaccurate rendition of  Paul McCartney, “Will you still need me? Will you still feed me? Will you still love me? When I’m sixty-four?”

“Yes,” she responded. “I will still love you!”

As we went up the stairs, I bellowed,””I will still love you even if I do not live to be sixty-four.

“Don’tt say that.”

“But I will always love you!”

I know, but I do not like to hear you say you might not live that long.

“Love never dies….”

Jan turned around and kissed me as we stepped into our living room. 

“You are such a romantic.”

I dropped my bags and unzipped my coat. 

I am a little late,” Jan said, holding up a small box.

I nodded so quickly that my neck hurt. 

Jan went to the bathroom to fill the test kit.

“Now we have to wait to see if the test is positive.”

I held my arms around her waist as we waited impatiently for the results. 

Oh my….” we screamed in unison. 

Dancing around the dining room into the living room, we celebrated. 

“We are having a baby!”

We halted in the middle of the living room and kissed passionately.

Looking over Jan’s shoulder, I could see Shira hissing. I could almost hear Shira saying, “I was here before you and will be here after you. I am the alpha male cat in this house!“

Avis sat quietly on the floor, wondering what all the fuss was about. 

Jan grabbed a notepad and suggested we review the steps she had jotted down.

Yes, my love, we are having a baby,” I screamed as we sat down to discuss the next steps.

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Neighbors and Other Stories

Read: February 2024

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Neighbors and Other Stories

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Today, I began reading Diane Oliver‘s Neighbors and Other Stories. It’s a powerful and eerie debut collection of stories that portrays the struggles of different characters as they face the everyday dangers of racism during the Jim Crow era. The book features an introduction by Tayari Jones.

Diane Oliver is an important yet often overlooked figure in African American literature of the 20th century. She was a gifted writer, ahead of her time, whose talent was cut short by her untimely death at 22 in 1966. Nevertheless, she left behind a remarkable collection of crisply written and often chilling tales that delve into race and racism in America during the 1950s and 60s. Oliver’s insightful stories remain relevant today; this is the only existing collection of her works. She has rightfully earned her place in the literary canon as a masterful storyteller.

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Read: November 2022

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A Gentleman in Moscow

by Amor Towles

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The Goodreads summary provides an overview.

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The Jan Lilien Education Fund sponsors ongoing sustainability and environmental awareness programs. Gifts made this month; I will match dollar-for-dollar. All donations are tax-deductible.

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Read: January 2024

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The Jan Lilien Education Fund sponsors ongoing sustainability and environmental awareness programs. Regarding gifts made this month, I will match dollar for dollar. All donations are tax-deductible.

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I receive a commission when you buy a book or product using a link on this page. Thank you for supporting Sharing Jan’s Love blog.

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Read: August 2023

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The Jan Lilien Education Fund sponsors ongoing sustainability and environmental awareness programs. Gifts made this month; I will match dollar-for-dollar. All donations are tax-deductible.

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I receive a commission when you buy a book or product using a link on this page. Thank you for supporting Sharing Jan’s Love blog.

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