Reflection

Sometimes I catch myself looking at her with nothing less than pure amazement. Looking right at her, but not hearing what she's trying to say to me... because my mind is too engrossed in the process of trying to commit every single thing to memory

I have those moments with all of the little people, but there is something certainly different with Ms. Ellie. Maybe it's because she's the littlest, and I feel that slipping away. I want to capture it before the essence is replaced with something new and different.

Perhaps it's because I'm trying to see a bit of myself when I look at this little blond girl...

Or just maybe the bond between a mother and a daughter, in the midst of boys, is something to behold. Maybe we've mentally banded together knowing that we're stronger as a team... that we can tame these wild beasts if we try together.

What ever the reason, I find myself making excuses to stop what I'm doing and just be near her. Undoubtedly, I indulge myself and sit on the floor near where she's playing. While sitting cross-legged and quiet, she will climb into my lap and sit, like a bird in a nest. She'll continue playing and we'll chat... but it's just as easy for us to quietly sit... just the two of us... while the boys buzz too and fro, running noisy circles around us, doing all of the things that boys do.

Eventually, she climbs from my lap to join the wild rumpus. She's good at that too. But before she runs off, I can't help but run my fingers through that yellow hair, still amazed, but no longer feeling so much like I need to see myself in there. We have something special that requires no reflection.