We stopped in Santa Fe late last summer for a visit and ended up staying for the winter. The initial plan was to visit Betty's daughter and her family for a week or so and then move on.
We were asked to stay and help with the new grandson as this young couple were both still working and they were both exhausted with a (at the time) 2- month-old child.
When the grandson was four months old, he and I had some alone time one afternoon while everyone else was working or running errands.
He had just eaten, but was still being fussy. I changed his diaper and that helped…for about 2.5 minutes.
He continued to be fussy and nothing was working to calm him down, not even the grandpa silliness that usually worked. Turns out, he just wanted to walk around while being held...naturally.
We walked from room to room.
Some rooms he didn't want to be in and he’d let you know about it. He became the most content when we stood in the kitchen looking at the refrigerator or at things on the counter while I gently swayed him. There was no reason, at least that I was aware of, why he wanted to do this other than to simply observe.
He started getting restless again so I had to move.
As I was holding him and walking laps around the coffee table - because, of course, this was the only thing currently working to keep him calm - I thought, “isn’t this just like life?”
We like to have answers to everything, but often times we simply don’t have that answer.
But once we take action, get up and move, do SOMETHING, then the answer comes.
Sometimes that answer doesn’t even make sense…but it works.
I looked down and he was asleep in my arms. I remember thinking maybe he’ll sleep for a few minutes and I can write something.
Taking chances
Adventure
Creativity
Adversity
Exploration
Curiosity
Engaging in challenges
Wonder
Trying and learning new things
There are things that we try to instill or encourage in our children that we, ourselves, seem to have forgotten along the way or simply don't do any more.
What if the purpose of having a child is not to teach them our ways, but to re-learn life?
Photo Betty Shivers