A Quiet Thank You

 

“The moment you doubt whether you can fly, you cease forever to be able to do it.”

— J. M. Barrie, Peter Pan

Over a year ago, I sat across from my friend Natasha at a little café and shared the idea that had been sitting quietly in the back of my mind for a long time. A children's book. A story about weaning. Gentle, loving, and rooted in the everyday moments between mother and child. I didn’t know yet what it would become, only that it needed to begin.

Natasha listened in that way that makes you feel like your thoughts matter. She asked kind questions, nodded at the right moments, and somehow made space for the idea to grow a little bigger just by being there.

Later, she gave me this drawing.

Two hands, holding a pair of baby feet. Pen and ink. Delicate and steady. It wasn’t made for the book at the time, but as soon as I saw it, I knew it belonged there. It held the same quiet energy I wanted to bring to every page. It felt like the essence of the series.

This image now appears on the parent note page of Bye-Bye, Boobies, and it will return in future books too. A small piece of the beginning, carried forward.

Thank you, Natasha. For the drawing. For the conversation. For the quiet nudge forward.

I’ll share more soon about how this small idea grew into a full-length picture book. For now, I’m just feeling grateful to the people who helped me begin.

Thanks for reading. You can explore the full Little Goodbyes series, blog and more at www.littlegoodbyes.ca