| Like all other mothers who have small
children, 1, too, have to steal time--from my own children at home and from the
children who know me as their teacher---just to put a few words down on paper.
Many times I've wanted to write for myself, for other women, for my parents, for
my husband, and especially for my children. I would have liked to leave a
legacy (遗产) of words explaining what it has meant to have twins. One reason
there is not a great deal written about being a mother of a new baby is that
there is seldom a moment to think of anything else but the baby's
needs. With twins, I did not have a spare hand to write with. Before my twins were born, my days were long but I had nothing to write about. After the twins' birth I did have something to write about, but I found myself facing not a pen or paper but milk bottles. During some nights, friends would visit. They would leave at 11 pm, heading for bed, and for us the night was only just beginning. With twins, there was really no night. Each feeding lasted a long time. At 1:00 am, each of them would begin crying with hunger. At 4:00 am, when I finally put them down, I headed for the kitchen and lighted a cigarette. I hadn't smoked for almost a year, but I felt I'd never needed it more. I was so sleepy and so tired that I didn't care. Two years have passed since then and we've managed to live through it all. My days are still very full and even now there isn't one evening when I put the twins down for the night that I don't breathe a sigh of relief. At last a little time for myself. |