it happened on our way to his appointment with the pediatrician to receive his 2nd PKU testing. he was one day shy of being 2 weeks old. miles cried in the car. it was heart wrenching, especially because he cries so rarely my heart wasn't quite used to the idea just yet. i felt hopelessly far from him; i in the front seat and he in the distant back seat. i couldn't even see his face!

i tried to console him, "its ok miles, its ok...we are almost there". i derived great motherly satisfaction in that my voice alone halted his crying almost immediately. i began to talk to him about anything i could think of. and then he began to cry again.

desperate, i tried something my mom had done while she was staying with us the week before - i sang. to be precise, i sang "this little light of mine" because it was what my mom had sung to him and the only song that could come into my mind. again, the screaming paused. i sang the same words over and over. i think this is why childrens songs are so repetitive. your brain is so exhausted from sleep deprivation and taxed by the crying you cannot be expected to remember anything other than one or two phrases. this worked temporarily and then the screams turned to a whimper and eventually faded as he fell asleep. just as we arrived at the doctor.