10

Zenny made it a decade. She has been the hardest one to keep alive, between head injuries, seizures, kidney surgery, and covid — but hopefully her upcoming preteen growth spurt will make her body sturdy enough to cruise through her second decade with no health-related excitement. The world is dangerous enough for teenage girls without them having to worry about kidney function.

Year nine was a big one for this kid. She was in the hospital for a week, recovery for a month, then started training to compete in the kids Spartan race, went to Lake George, learned to drive a boat, and got into horseback riding. At this time she still wants to be a doctor, but she’s starting to get interested in the science end of it instead of the medical end. She asked for a microscope for her birthday, and she’s had her eyeball stuck to it ever since.

She’s a happier, more sociable child than I was. Still squeamish about blood, and she cringes with her whole body and covers her face if someone on tv does something embarrassing. She’s a reader, an empathetic listener, and she reads my mind in an unnerving way if she notices I’m thinking about something.

Love this kid so much.

May your next decade be full of all the good stuff, kiddo.