Alexander, born in early 1998 in Santa Cruz,
California
Alex: 2002-2007
Alex is our littlest, our farewell to our
own procreation. His mother was expecting him when we left France, and he was
born in Santa Cruz early in 1998. Unlike all our other children, he has only
ever had one home.
Like Charlie, the older children gelled around
him and loved to play with him. Of course, that was a little more difficult for
Nick and Tom at first, because the courts retained them in France until August 1999.
They only saw him during irregular vacations until he was a year and a half old.
By the time this tapestry was completed, in
2008, the older children were less present in Alex's
life. Nick was already 22 years old,
Daphné 21 and Tom and
Alban 19. All were more focused on their own lives,
turning outward, of course, away from the family they were raised in, moving in
and out of the house.
Charlie remains only two years older than Alex, and he stuck
with his little bro., always loyal, as the older children dispersed and became
young adults. And Alex continued to admire his big brother. Their friendship
remained an anchor in both their lives.
On the left is our favorite recent photo of Alex, taken by Jim
Hatfield for Happy Valley School in Santa Cruz in September
2005.
Way to go, Jim, you nailed it!
On the right, in what was his and Charlie's joint bedroom, 2004.
It's now his very own!
There is a delicacy about Alex, about his features and his build.
But that's not all there is. These two photos give an idea of his range. They
don't show you his will, which has been developing over the years.
He resists the violin more as he gets older, but can still produce some
beautiful notes, plaintiff and fragile.
More photos of Alex and his violin on the music page.
In soccer, he's a lot tougher than he looks. He's
got vision to see what's happening around him, and a serious shot.
Plus, as is demonstrated on the right, he already has a good sense of what is
important in life! (It was first time that he had seen such a bill, and he liked
it!)
