I just got that call. My boy Chris, also known as Mr. CMG himself, and his wife Marise have welcomed their second daughter, Victoria Jolie Simone, into the world. God, I love that name. She arrived full of life and promise, weighing 8 pounds and 1.5 ounces, stretching 19.75 inches long, and making her presence known at exactly 12:23 PM central time.
I love her name for more than one reason. First, it is regal. It is elegant. It carries the grace and power that every young queen should inherit. A name that does not just identify her, but crowns her. Second, and more personally, there was something Chris said to me weeks ago when we were talking about names that has never left me. He told me, “I was in the gym one day and I heard the Lord say I am forming VICTORY in your wife's womb.” I saved that quote. I read it again and again. And every time, it hits me with the same force. Every time, it pulls something deep from within me and holds it tenderly.
This is a good weekend. No, this is a great weekend. I have always been a believer in love, in marriage, and in the sacred duty of parenthood. To see my friends building families rooted in love, building legacies out of joy and commitment, brings a kind of warmth that does not just fill me. It lives in me. It settles deep in my bones and reminds me that we are capable of extraordinary things when we lead with love.
Right now, four of my closest and oldest friends are either welcoming or preparing to welcome new life. Chris and Ben both became fathers to daughters this weekend. And two more men I love like family, Quincy and Justin, are entering their final stretch before delivery. Quincy, who helped raise me from the apartment next door. Justin, who has always been my rider. These men have seen me at my highest. They have stayed with me at my lowest. They have carried me with nothing in return but the hope that I would keep going. Keep healing. Keep becoming. They have loved me without condition. And all I have ever asked is that I be allowed to love them back the same way.
I had written more. Something longer. Something more focused on me. But I realized quickly that today is not about me. Today is theirs. This moment belongs to them, and so this offering will too.
I love you all. I wish you nothing less than the fullness of joy that this life has to give. You have been entrusted with the sacred calling of raising and shaping another human soul. You do not walk that road alone. You have a tribe behind you. You have a support system around you. You have me.
I have told you this in private. Now I say it out loud for all to hear. WHENEVER. WHEREVER. HOWEVER. I AM HERE FOR YOU ALL.
HERE IS THE BABIES R US PLAYLIST ONCE AGAIN. IF YOU ARE HAVING PROBLEMS PLAYING THE PLAYLIST BELOW, CLICK ON LAUNCH STANDALONE PLAYER AND IT SHOULD PLAY.
GVG
~Godfather and Uncle to the stars~
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