ON JANUARY 27, 2000, my life took a final and most major turn in its direction.  I was still in college, working towards a teaching degree.  I was still Head Resident of the Dorms there.  I was still the same man that I had been for the past few years, with one very important difference:  I was now a father.  Oh, I won't bother to try and explain how this came to be or how I felt upon learning the fact.  The circumstances leading up to it were the latest in a long line that had lead to this, I now believe, inevitability.  To try and explain it to someone not involved is both improper and irrelevant.  Suffice it to say that the day came when the love of my life, Margo, let me know that she was with child, and that we would eventually have a son named Liam Martin Dollan.

Even as I sit here typing this, I look over to see that child, now a healthy two-and-something years old sleeping on the couch, wrapped up in a simple bed sheet, his eyes and body unable to meet the demands of psyche, which is to stay awake and play as long as possible.  I do see my son there, biologically and physically.  But I see so much more.  I see his past, leading up to this very moment, of course.  But I also see his future stretching out before him, with a long line of friends, hurts, loves, adventures, and accomplishments awaiting him.  And interestingly, I can see myself in him.  Oh, not physically.  With a few exceptions, he takes after his mother's side most of all.  But I do see him now as I remember myself in what seems  like a hazy and distant past.  I remember certain things from when I was his age.  Perhaps they are more like impressions.  But I do recall them, and now and again I see him experiencing them as well.  How I envy you, Liam!  Your time is coming, as mine is here, and the road that leads to it will be long at times, often rocky, but well worth the journey.  I know you will cherish it, as I cherish my own journey, and as I will cherish watching yours.

What follows is an ongoing account of my son and his adventures through life.  At something over two, perhaps these chronicles will be rather short.  But there are entire chapters to be added, for certain.  And the book itself will not end for a good long while.

The Arrival, being an accounting of the great anticipation that occurred before and during the birth of Liam...Last updated October 9, 2005.  Page considered complete.

Watching the Boy Grow Up is not some sort of sad, "Cat in the Cradle" type of essay, but rather my own thoughts on the amazing journey that we've had thus far.  With Liam's sixth birthday looming on the horizon as I write these words (October 9, 2005), I can only marvel at how he's turned out...Page pending

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All contents of this page © John M. and Margo L. Dollan 2002-2005 unless otherwise noted.
This Page first uploaded February 22, 2003
Most recent update for this page October 9, 2005