(Contributed by Angela Workman. Read more about our writers here.)

“Can you feel him?” my sister-in-law Kelly asked me as we sat on a couple stools at my mom’s house over Easter weekend. I shook my head, concentrating. “There he is…I found him….” she chuckled as she increased her grip on my hand. Slightly out-of-breath and wincing, she moved my open-palm over her protruding belly right to where my growing nephew’s elbow or knee or foot was. I looked excitedly into her eyes and we both laughed as…

WHAM!!

There it was, that beautiful movement. A kick! Under the skin, inside the womb, you could see him bulge and twist as the life inside her belly moved slowly under my hand, reacting to the pressure my palm made on the baby’s personal space.

After about thirty seconds of my hand on her belly, Kelly shifted uncomfortably, and said, “Este, come put the baby to sleep.” My brother Esteban came over immediately, kissed her forehead, and placed his warm daddy-hand right on that dancing baby. You could see almost immediate relief on my sister-in-law’s face. Warm and tender, strong and capable, the baby cuddled underneath the comfort of his daddy’s large sweaty hand, and inside the womb, fell asleep. Kelly leaned against my brother, smiled up at him, and asked for a grilled portabella mushroom and Brussel sprouts. It was a lovely moment.

I watched all of this transpire with fondness. I remember asking my husband to do the same thing when I was in my third trimester. I don’t mean the Brussel sprouts and mushrooms part. What I remember is that movement, what it felt like…like a life inside a life. It was joy and anticipation and aching and longing. Those jumps were signs that all was well and the baby was growing and breathing. That being said, boy oh boy, could those jumps, bumps and kicks hurt! Sometimes the only thing that would calm that wiggle-squiggle baby was his daddy’s large warm hands. They soothed and calmed the both of us every single time the baby got a bit too rowdy inside my belly.

It got me to thinking afterward: what makes this act so comforting – a daddy’s hand on the belly, and not only for us moms, but also for that little one on the inside? It’s just a hand on a belly, right? What’s the big deal? Is it the warmth mom feels when that hot hand is placed on her belly? Is it that the baby calms down and stops trying to drop-kick mom’s kidney into her ribs? Is it the closeness of the one you love sharing a moment of new life and movement? Is it magic and stardust and unicorn rainbows? Well, maybe. Maybe it’s all the above…and maybe it’s more.

Daddy’s hands are a connection, not unlike the connection we feel with our Father in Heaven; a comfort that is lovingly placed upon us when we need to be still and rest. That feeling of sinking into a warm bath, snuggling a blanket that just got out of the dryer, warm hands cupping your face, being enveloped in the softest and warmest of hugs from a loved one…that’s the sensation, the connection, the warmth…a beautiful twinkling of a moment with someone who loves you who wants you comforted and peaceful.

Sometimes I feel like that; a baby in a womb. I am constantly comforted and consoled by those around me who care about my well-being. Warm hands are everywhere in my life; I am very blessed. And as I grow and evolve into the woman God wants me to be, many times I push against my situation, but the reality is that maybe I’m not quite developed enough in the present to move into what God has in store for me in the future. What calms me in these moments is the presence and warmth of love. I feel it all around me. I allow myself to be calmed by God and those who love me, and I know I am right where I need to be.

My sweet nephew is due in May. His arrival is anticipated by our entire family. I am beyond excited to see what he looks like and who he’ll become…the choices he will make…who he will be. I wonder if this anticipation is what my Father in Heaven feels with my every kick as well.

Photo Credit: McFadden

Originally Published 5/12/2016