We thought about capturing the headlines from Michiko’s birth, the current events playing out. But we didn’t. Or, at least, we haven’t. There’s no Apollo moon landing. There are riots in Ferguson, Missouri. There is war, there is always war, in the Middle East. Executions. Ebola. War in Ukraine. To say, this is the time in which you were born, seems wrong. To welcome this new life into our lives, to bring her into the world, I want the world to match how I feel. That moment of witnessing life being born is amazing. While all of these events are happening across the world, it’s the media perspective. If I could record the headlines from individual lives, what would they look like?

“Stranger held the door open for me.”

“My son made it safely to Alaska; sleeping well now.”

“Kissed him for the first time. Still smiling.”

“Watched the sunset in Yosemite.”

“Road my bike without training wheels!”

“Fell in love.”

“Persevering.”

Those are the headlines I want to capture. Sure, they also skew toward a certain perspective, but it’s one I want to see. The small triumphs of everyday people. The personal stories. The ups, and the downs, as well.