She is the first child I got to bring home, arriving with swift and exacting punctuality. Josephine the Saluki was so relieved, she slept for three days, curled near wherever the BD was.   We named her a first name belonging to no one we knew and a middle named that was in honour of the best people I have ever known, and the sister I never quite knew. The rest was a tradition I still don't quite fathom but there is so much I don't understand. It was around Fanglet's birthday that I received the call that the baby in residence was clear of the genetic miscalculation that had decorated us the year before. I had been so tentative but it was  then I made the concerted effort to actively enjoy impending motherhood. I radiated  (Josephine, the BD - in utero, obviously - and I the Monday before the BD arrived).  Even on its most trying days, I still marvel that it is something I am - a mother. It was not something I thought was destined for my table. I am ...