...Charlotte visits me in my classroom on Monday. She gets out the car wearing long jeans (not her normal choice). "I'm wearing big girl pants," she explains. "So I'll look like one of the big kids." I smile as we walk through the maze of high schoolers. Charlotte barely comes up to their hips. But she walks confidently, assured she's blending right in. We color pictures and play games of tic-tac-toe on the desks in my classroom. She jumps from my cupboard in the corner to the pile of over-sized, batik pillows on the floor. I have to "shush" her a few times because she's squealing with loud laughter. Before she leaves she draws a picture on my white board. It is a large square present with the following label: "To Mom, from Charlotte. I love you." As she adds decorations - small red and blue polka dots - she says, "This is so you can have a party in your classroom every day."
...Amelia and I play basketball on the black cal-de-sac in front of our house before dinner. She dribbles with her right and left hand interchangeably. The motorcycles parked near the basket make for difficult obstacles. We cringe each time we miss a basket, and it hits the motorcycle seat. We tie at PIG. Our hands are smudged with black from the pavement.
....Soccer games at JIS: A flash of blond hair across the field as Madi sprints toward the goal. Charlotte soaks herself in the misting tent. Paper kites dart and dodge in the sky above the campoon behind the JIS field. Elise is the tallest on her team - easily spotted on the field. The coach has her play forward during the last quarter where she scores another goal for her team.
...Night time chapter book reading with the kids crowded in my bed. Bathed-wet hair on my pillows. The plea, "One more chapter pleeeeease!" And a standing ovation when we finish the book "Wonder."
...One school night we sit around the living room and realize with surprise: "We're all home AT THE SAME TIME!" Great cause for celebration. We play a spontaneous game of "Wolf" (a keep-away game done with a stuffed animal while crawling crab-style). My wrists and palms hurt with the pounding on the marble floor. So I sit back and watch the lovely chaos.
...I join Truman with his daily workout (his cub scout goal). Push ups (I do girl pushups), pull ups, squats, situps, and plank work. We tip over Harry Potter lego figures to mark our progress through the five rounds.
...Charlotte and I cuddle under the sheets strung between chairs. Pillows and blankets snatched from beds cushion us. The flashlight bobs over the words of the book, "I will not eat them in a box, I will not eat them with a fox. I do not like green eggs and ham." Then together in chorus: "I don't not like them Sam-I-Am."
....Poor Santa! The Indonesian Santa statue on Taragong Raya took a spill a few weeks ago, yet no one has come to his rescue. Day after day we pass him: he is one-legged and perilously upside down. We sing Christmas Carols, especially "Hey Santa," to keep up his spirits. Madi and Elise laugh from the back seat of the car.
Just small moments. But the kind of moments that fill me with joy and remind me just how good life is.
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