THIRTY YEARS OF HARLEY

years ago, my life changed forever. I became a father for the first time. I wasn't prepared for the sheer scale of how it would change me, but looking back, I feel incredibly fulfilled and a better man for the experience.

​It was a Friday, and as I remember it, the weather was hot and sunny. Yet, we were operating under a dark cloud. Just a week earlier, we had been dealt devastating news. Following what we assumed was a routine scan, we met with a doctor who bluntly stated he had concerns that the baby's head hadn't developed properly, and told us survival was unlikely. Then, he simply left the room. No one else came in. There was nobody to answer our frantic questions, and no one to help us process a bolt from the blue that completely shattered our world.

​We went home in shock. After a few desperate phone calls, we were finally invited back to speak to a specialist nurse who tried her best to reassure us. Morticia was booked in for an induced delivery on the Friday, which was the scheduled due date. Following a C-section, our little girl came into the world—perfectly healthy, and completely normal. That same doctor briefly popped his head in later to see mother and baby, muttered that "sometimes scans aren't all that clear," and left. We never saw him again.

​We raised our little girl who, despite some incredibly difficult, far-from-ordinary teenage years, has grown into a beautiful woman.

​Today Harley celebrates thirty years, right here in the house where her mother celebrated her own 30th all those years ago. Of course, she's visiting today; Harley is married now and lives over near Hillsborough, but she still comes home often for those vital home comforts.

​She started her day on the east coast with her husband, watching the sunrise on the very first morning of a new decade of her life.

​Later on, they both came over to us, where we hosted a home-cooked family tea to celebrate. She had requested one of her absolute favourites for the occasion: Morticia's homemade minced-beef pasties.

​It was a simple family get-together, the kind of afternoon we all value and cherish deeply. To mark this milestone, we had wrapped thirty individual gifts for her, ranging from a nostalgic bottle of Lucozade (something she was absolutely mad about as a teenager) to a classic signature leather jacket she'd had her eye on. It was great fun, and hopefully a day she will remember fondly for many years to come.

​Happy birthday, Harley. x

The spirit of the Urban Viking—and the occasional absurdity of navigating the modern world—lives on in my webcomic, Northman. 

You can read the latest chapter here: northman.kirt.me.uk

I’ll be sharing more of my journey and the daily reality of staying grounded in the modern world over on social media. Join in:

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