one friend shares her flower with another
—
as a teacher of young children
i am always struck
by the natural way
that children connect with each other
reaching out
with genuine kindness and kinship.
—
“anyone who takes time to be kind is beautiful.”
-author unknown
when i was a little girl
one of my sisters used to bite her nails
when i’d look out the window
see the sliver of a moon
i thought that was her nail up there
wanting endlessly
to think of a way to get it back for her.
—
“it’s like we’re on a rocket ship that we were just painting,
and suddenly it took off
and we’re holding onto the ship with our fingernails.
– Esteban Contreras
a very special delivery
going to a very special place:
the fairy house in our school garden.
they will be so happy.
“find happiness by delivering it”
– chris murray
day two of our return to school
we all find comfort in our own way
a donkey, a pillow, a bus, a dragon
each makes all the difference to someone.
—
“cure sometimes, treat often, comfort always.”
-hippocrates
fifteen months old
back to the baby book we go
another precursor to my future
pretty accurate then and now.
not so much the running.
—
“walks and runs real well. understands almost anything you tell her. climbs on everything.
also started kissing at 15 months.”
– my mom
—
“once we believe in ourselves, we can risk curiosity, wonder, spontaneous delight,
or any experience that reveals the human spirit.”
– e. e. cummings
from the rhythm and music section of my baby book:
“loves to hear record player going or any music at 15 months.
attempts to dance to it and complains when music stops.”
not one part of this has changed except for my age.
—
“music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul.”
-plato
standing in my yard
a child
small among the birch trees
i would slowly peel away the bark
creating the most delicate pieces of beautiful paper
a gift from the tree
uncurled and waiting to be my papyrus.
—
“out of sight above the house, the mirror moon reflected the sun of a day not yet dawned,
shining the pale light of tomorrow on the yard and on the paper birches.”
-dean koontz
—
image credit: white birch fragrance oil
back in the day
when my girls were little
if there was a power outage
I would tell them
we were just like the family
in ‘the little house on the prairie’
we could pretend we were them
have lots of fun
it was okay for a while
until it got old
the novelty wore off
when there was
no pa playin’ the fiddle
no butter to churn
no humming and singing
no stitchin’ to be done
no cows to milk
then we just had to wait it out
and it was not fun.
—
“where a light can’t live, i know i can’t.”
-Laura Ingalls Wilder, Little House on the Prairie
—
image credit: nbc tv
I was 6 years old and so excited to finally get my chatty-cathy
a doll with a string in the back
that you could pull and she would talk
(18 phrases at random)
‘please take me with you’
‘may I have a cookie?’
‘I love you.’
she was a wonderful doll
we were happy together
until
I came home one day
and noticed to my horror
that my oldest sister
had given her a haircut
(picture a choppy hacked pixie cut with stringy bits)
I did not have a good reaction to it
I exploded in tears
very dramatically
sobbing and instantly tattling on her
chatty’s hair never grew back
and one day she was gone.
(the doll, not my sister)
after all these years
I still bring it up
to my sister
every so often
she always tells me
she had no idea
I would have such a strong reaction
she was just trying to give her a fancy hair style
and while I have long-ago forgiven her
I still have no idea
what chatty may have said to her during the haircut.
‘
—
“a beloved doll’s voice speaks directly to your soul
in a way that cannot be explained in words.”
-gayle wray
p.s. I am not a fan of dolls as an adult, they kind of terrify me, especially talking ones.
—
image credit: Mattel Toys
“a child’s life is like a piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark.”
– Chinese Proverb
