Need a Boost? Hug a Baby

Maybe you didn't know the power of babies. Though a young baby can't do things like walk or talk, they have the immense power to heal people in such a profound manner. Since Kai was born, I've watched how he has transformed people around us.

For me, he's healing old wounds and helping me understand how to build a family.

But it's not just me, family members who were in a bit of funk the past few years are transforming into care takers and finding a deep happiness through Kai.

I watch my mother who had to leave my brother when he was barely a year old during the Viet Nam war and didn't reunite with him until he was 28--Kai has healed her. She has been right by our side since the night Kai was born ready to help raise him. Perhaps she's making up for loss time with my brother in a way but certainly she is energized and inspired by him too.

For my grandfather who sits in his Tenderloin studio in San Francisco, he is overjoyed to hold Kai and laughs like never before. It's amazing to see the interaction between an 84 year-old and a 4-month old.

For the older woman who walks around the lake, she peeks into Kai's stroller and is overjoyed by this little person who is discovering the natural world.

Babies open people up in ways they never thought possible. Perhaps it's the new life looking you straight in the eye, their laugh, their scent, or their need to hold on to you. They remind us that we were once fragile and all loving. No matter who you are and what you're going through, spend time with a new baby and see what's happens.