bits and pieces

Standing in the shower at the gym I hear a woman practicing her scales. Over and over again her voice echoes down the brown tiled hallway, in perfect pitch, rising and falling over the notes. I am amazed when I witness someone able to do something so effortlessly. I dawdle in the shower listening and smiling at the ease at which she performs this relatively routine task. The comfort of this moment is collapses around me when I am greeted at the lockers by a woman who chooses not to wear any clothing in the locker room. The idea of politely covering yourself out of respect for people around you is completely lost on this woman. I don’t care if the body is worth looking at, I don’t need to see it. I extend my “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy to my body as well as other strangers. How this woman had the ability to talk to me about anything while standing there completely naked is beyond me. Keeping my eyes well above neck level did not prevent me from taking in this woman, or rather piece of “body art” in all her glory. Piercings in a place that make me shudder to think about, with metal studs no less. I suddenly felt a headache coming on and left without drying my hair.

I am sitting outside in a lawn chair watching my son play catch with his father. Dan has been waiting for this moment since Nik was born. The idea of having a son as our firstborn brought up all these “movie-inspired” moments for Dan having a “game of catch with his boy in the yard.” Now the dream is realized. Dan is beside himself. He glows with pride, not only at the strength of Nik’s throwing arm, but also that the incredible creature tossing him the football with exact precision is actually his son.

Emma and I sit on the back step and “chat” as I paint her nails. Red rose for her fingernails and Supreme Blush Pink for her toenails. Emma chatters on about her 7 sisters who live in Mexico and ride horses and I think about how I want to bottle this moment and keep it for a lifetime. I wonder if Emma will remember these moments. When I ask her “what was the best part about today?” she often will recall quiet, simple moments that involve her making her own jelly sandwich or helping me fold the towels or laying under the dining room table talking about the ball she was to be attending later that evening and the beautiful dress she would be wearing.

The children are reaching ages where they entertain themselves. And for the most part, their choices aren’t harmful to themselves, household pets, or our property. I am finally getting a chance to sit back and watch them experience their childhoods. What a time!