I took a walk with a three year old young man today.
His mama was frazzled and he was bored.
"Grab your shoes," I told him. He ran to his Mom to get his shoes on and ran to the door. After fixing the shoestrings and the coat was on the way he wanted and I showed him the edge of the sidewalk and where we would walk...we were off.
A dried piece of weed draped across an edge of the sidewalk, and I bent down to check it out. He followed my lead and bent in half beside me. I broke a piece off and gave him half and continued on our way.
Have you ever took a walk with a toddler? And looked at things the way they do? The broken sticks in the gutter, the ice and the small patch of snowing clinging to life are all gold to these little explorers. A little encouragement is all they need to sift for treasure along the way.
A smooth stone sat contentedly on the driveway of a house. I stopped to admire it and said, "Look at this! What a find!" Putting the rock in the chubby sticky little hand and marking our success. "Should we put it in your pocket?" He loved the idea and struggled on his own to put it in the small pocket. I gave him time to work on it and then offered my help. Together, we carefully tucked his treasure in the little fleece protective pocket.
We took two steps. A small pebble caught his eye and a spark was ignited. He gingerly picked it up and contently tucked it in his pocket. Then another. And another.
When we rounded the block, his mom met us and delighted in the proud eyes of a toddler with a pocket full of treasure. A contented young man and a proud mom drove off into the sunset.
Sitting on the floor next to a new Christmas fort, I watched two small brothers play. "What's this?" I asked them. "It's a fort!" and they proceeded to show me how it works. The fort had a picture of Captain Hook on it, so it soon became a boat. (My boys loved the Hook movie when they were little and had great adventures running from the crocodile and staying out of the water.)
I picked up a small toy and we pretended it was a crocodile and the carpet was the ocean and the mattress with the fort now on it...was the boat. When they stepped out of the fort and onto the "water" the croc swam close and they squealed and jumped on the boat. Soon various toys became hot dogs, fries, fishing poles and fish. Legos were very important boating tools.
The joy and imagination of these little ones is such a gift. The ability to make something out of nothing and enjoy every moment a lesson.
My boys "don't get it" that I still have rocks given to me by small little hands tucked in my top drawer.
I smile.
These rocks reverberate across time with their memories of my little boys exploring the world. Laughter, imagination and shared moments of joy and delight ring within my heart.
A small moment in time captured within the smooth stone in my hand.
Don't forget to take time to pick up rocks, ride in boats and make every moment matter!
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