Five Years Old

Five Years Old

By 王渊源John

Dear Joe(jō),

Today is your fifth birthday. You’re five years old! I can’t believe it. It seems like just yesterday that your mom and I were going for walks downstairs(ˈdounˈste(ə)rz) talking about what it would be like to have a baby join our family.

Well, it’s been more wonderful than we ever could have imagined. We fell in love with you the first moment that we saw you, and it has been an absolute(ˈabsəˌlo͞ot,ˌabsəˈlo͞ot) privilege(ˈpriv(ə)lij) to watch you grow up to be such a kind, thoughtful, curious(ˈkyo͝orēəs) and fun boy.

You were born in Beijing, and spent most of the first year of your life here. Then, shortly before your first birthday, we left Beijing and went on adventures together around the world. Your first steps were in a ramen(ˈrämən) shop in Kyoto(kēˈ(y)ōdō), and you made friends in restaurants, AirBnbs, museums(myo͞oˈzēəm) and playgrounds in each city we visited. You may not remember the details, but we watched you grow and learn.

For the last couple of years, we’ve been back in Beijing, and you’ve continued to explore and make friends in and out of school. Your brother was born last year, and you have been the most incredible brother that we could have ever imagined. We love to see the love that the two of you share.

Recently, we’ve all been home together. Sometimes it’s been hard to not be able to go out and play or see friends from school, but we’ve also been so grateful(ˈgrātfəl) to have this time together as a family.

You’re five years old now, and you will continue to learn so many new things. I hope you always remember to be curious and kind. We are so excited(ikˈsīt) to keep learning with you.

Love,
Dad