Moonlit Missives is my February series dedicated to writing love letters to individuals and communities deserving of recognition and respect. Valentine’s Day is the perfect opportunity to express love, appreciation, and remind others of their visibility and significance. Through these heartfelt letters, I hope to uplift, honor, and celebrate those who often go unrecognized.
Dear New Parent,
Welcome to the most breathtaking, soul-shifting, heart-expanding journey of your life. Right now, you might be running on fumes, on instincts you didn’t even know you had, on a kind of love so overwhelming it knocks the breath from your lungs. This is the wild, sacred, uncharted beginning of parenthood.
I remember when I first became a parent. I thought I was ready—I read every book, took every class, downloaded every app. I planned, prepared, and braced myself for the unknown. But nothing could have truly prepared me for the storm of emotions, the exhaustion, the deep, aching love that settled into my bones the moment I held my baby. My plans unraveled with a whirlwind labor, an early birth, a rush to the NICU. And in those moments, when I felt lost and unprepared, I learned the greatest truth of all—parenthood is not about being ready. It is about rising.
You will rise.
Through the sleepless nights, through the feedings that don’t go as planned, through the worry that grips your chest like a vice—through it all, you will rise. Not perfectly, not effortlessly, but with a love so fierce, so immeasurable, it will carry you through even the hardest of days.
If you feel anxious, you are not alone. If you feel overwhelmed, you are not failing. If you feel lost, know that love will always guide you back. Lean on those who offer you grace instead of advice, presence instead of pressure. Allow yourself to be held while you hold your baby.
This journey will shape you, stretch you, soften and strengthen you all at once. And through it all, one beautiful, unshakable truth remains: You were made for this child, and this child was made for you.
So take a deep breath, new parent. You are already enough. You are already everything your baby needs. And you are so, so loved.
With all my heart,
Katie
The Forty Files 