Today’s moment is a simple one, but also kind of a big-kid milestone that bears noting. On a break from remote schooling, some of our neighbor besties were outside together at the same time during their lunch break today. In an instant, I realized that they haven’t all been in our back yard since last fall, since it was cold and wintery immediately pre-pandemic, and we’ve all been mostly apart since March. The younger girls played on our little playground set (that our crew has mostly outgrown at this point). Our neighbor, my daughter’s little six year old buddy hopped up and modeled the way across, and then turned around and encouraged my daughter to give it a try and started to coach her dear friend on the monkey bars. Without hesitation, up my daughter climbed. That is such a big moment in a kid’s development…one I had sort of forgotten about (sorry, fourth born!). But since we haven’t been to a playground at all since pre-winter I guess (perhaps in early spring?)… it was a milestone that had sort of been eclipsed by this whole crazy world. Off she went, first try, one hand and then the next….our littlest babe, doing a big kid thing!! The confidence she had, the pride beaming from her eyes (peeking over her mask), being cheered on by her best friends on this planet…. it was just such a wonderful moment, and I was so lucky to be standing by and able to observe it.
There’s so much heavy and stressful and heartbreaking and overwhelming right now, for most everyone on this planet, for lots of different reasons. Sometimes, out of the clear blue sky, grace shows up and finds you, in the form of a brown eyed beauty, a whole hand big, rocking flip flops and a rainbow dress and a mask, traversing the monkey bars. ✨
Care to share your thoughts?