Almost a decade ago to this exact minute, I gave birth to a little boy. After a 36-hour labor, a little fellow with a mop of dark brown hair, a big nose and a frown (my child, all right!) finally pushed his way into our world, and my life has not been the same since. I had already lived a lot of years before Theo came along – almost 39 to be exact – but since his arrival, I have experienced emotions with an intensity I couldn’t even imagine before becoming a mother: the knowledge that I would do absolutely anything to prevent someone from hurting this little person, the powerful melting love I feel when he cuddles up beside me, the bursting sense of pride when he masters the pogo stick, passes another karate test or a figures out a new function on his computer, and the maddening frustration when he refuses to do his homework/go to bed/brush his teeth for the 100th time this week.

This little boy who has been evolving in front of my eyes for a decade of my life now is transforming into a chatty, intuitive, witty, caring, dramatic, and stubborn young person. With his strong personality, he will certainly have challenges throughout his life, but his father David and I know he will face them with a determination and sense of humor that will hopefully not only see him through but also help him to rise above them.

Today I gave Theo, our boy with the Greek name for “god,” a silver ring that I bought in Greece when I was about his age and visited the country with my family one spring. It is decorated with the famous Greek meander or key fret pattern, a continuous geometric scroll pattern that symbolizes infinity as well as unity and friendship. I loved the ring as a child and feel that Theo is a good age to appreciate its symbolism and the concept of infinity. The gift of this ring to him symbolizes the bond I have had with him since I first sensed him inside my belly and the eternal love I feel for this smart, hilarious, kind, crazy, crazy-making child called Theo.