Her body is covered in mud when she says it. I LOOK SO BEAUTIFUL, MOMMA, she says. She is naked, save her underpants, and her hair is tied back into a ponytail. The sun is shining in her hair.
I am not certain I have ever seen something so lovely as the sun kissing her flyaway curls just before it sets.
The neighbor’s cat has flopped onto its back beside her, begging for a belly rub. Her dress and her moccasins are drying off in the sunlight. And I am there, too, sitting on the edge of the creek, dangling my feet in the water while she splashes.
I SAW A FAIRY, she tells me. IN THE MUD. She lists off everything that floated and everything that sank when she threw them in the water. She asks me: when she grows bigger and bigger, will she float too? If you learn how to, I tell her. OH, she says. Then I will learn how to!
One day, she will be older and this day will be forgotten and when someone asks her what beautiful is mud will not make the list. One day, she will be older and she will be able to float and she will think it was silly to have ever believed in fairies. And one day, she will be older and she will not have time to pet the neighbor’s cat or splash in the creek with her momma for a couple hours.
But for now, she is standing in a creek and wielding a stick and screaming I AM PRINCESS WATER-STRIDER! She is little, still, and innocent and imaginative. She tells me she hears the wind.
This moment, while it lasts, is perfect to me.
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This is my favorite of every post you have ever written. You have an amazing little person on your hands.
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I’m still struggling to capture the magic of little moments like that before my little one is too hold to cuddle on mommy’s lap while reading a book, or sit for hours to talk to airplanes when they take off.
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So special and beautiful. I love the way you write and are able to capture some wonderful, priceless memories!
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wow. just wow!
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I find myself thinking similar thoughts everyday with my son. I love this time with him while everything is so magical and I will miss it dearly when its gone…
Beautiful post.
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They make every day priceless, don’t they? You make me want to go hug my kids!
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{love} - Your little girl is the same age as mine, and everything you wrote here just rings so familiar and poignant and bittersweet. So. Much. Love. xx Catherine
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Yes, yes, yes. Beautiful. Lovely. Amazing.
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Sometimes I read stuff that really, really makes me want to have kids. This is very much one of those times. <3
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This was so, so lovely to read. I’m glad you got to experience such a pleasant and peaceful time!!
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By carolina on February 23, 2012
so beautiful and so true…but she will have this blog to look back on and to remind her of the things that made her oh so very happy :o)