Screaming “Base!”
Today I chase my daughter around the living room to tickle her. At one point, she defiantly stops in her tracks, places one hand on the couch and screams, “Base!” “I’m safe! I’m safe on base! You can’t touch me!” she insists, nodding her head and putting one hand up as a stop sign. I […]
Some Pictures of Hope
The landscape in Pennsylvania, for the most part, still frowns with the weight of winter. Trees raise their arms in surrender to a blank sky. After church this morning, my youngest daughter pulls on a double layer of pants and says, “Mom, let’s go on a hunt for daffodils.” (How can I not follow her […]
Little Girl, Big Puddle
The First Spring Melt Can I Do This? Yes, I Can Free to Play ________________Journal: Can I see my fear as a puddle? I won’t sink; I’ll play.
Keeping Hope Alive
Yesterday, this little girl (the one who lost her first tooth) brings home a homemade bird feeder. She announces that the bagel was “a rotten one, leftover from her teacher’s kitchen,” and the birdseed and spread cannot be eaten by humans. Noted. We hang the bird feeder on the winterberry bush. And we wait. […]
Licking the Blender Whisk
It’s a snow day in our county, and the children and I make cookies to frost. The girls crowd around me and eagerly reach for the blender whisks after I’ve made the vanilla frosting. I hand the whisks down, and I purposefully arrange some extra frosting on each one. A child licking the blender whisks […]
Walking on Water
This morning, the lawns become ice skating rinks. The children are so light they can skate across the surface of the snow without falling through. When I walk, I sink. I’m just too heavy. All day, I think of those weightless little children and the joy they exude as they twirl and slide to school. […]
If You Were an Explorer. . .
This morning I learn about the exploration goals of the 3rd and 4th graders. If they could be explorers–anywhere–where would they go and why? My daughter says, “I would explore the ocean depths to find sea glass, coral, and dolphins.” Her friend agrees, but he suggests that they explore the Bermuda Triangle for these things […]
Count Your Whorls
I learn this morning that you can tell the age of a pine tree by its number of “whorls.” One child stops in the woods on the walk to school, and she counts the circles of branches that shoot out from a tiny pine tree. The top layer of branches is one whorl and represents […]
Beyond Math and Music: Encouraging Excellence in Friendship
Last night, a friend arrives for a sleepover. She has a green envelope that she presents to my daughter. It’s a homemade “friendship award.” She awards it to my daughter for “always understanding her.” I nearly burst into tears. I run and get the tape and slap that thing to the wall where […]
A Great Cloud of Witnesses
This morning, my friends and I huddle by the school entrance, making conversation with other parents and school administrators. As we notice the line of cars pulling up to drop off children, I’m overcome with the desire to run up to the car doors, open them wide, and greet each child like he or she […]