Today at preschool one of my favorites came in with a frown. It did little to tone down the allure of her irresistible dark brown eyes and lashes that could put Maybelline out of business. I slid her large Fuji on the apple slicer and she turned it vigorously.

 

"Are you sad today?" I asked. 

 

The corners of her rosebud lips went down as far as she could stuff them.

 

"But I'm here now." She let go of her annoyance like a helium balloon and in its place she plunged into the task of flattening dough. Just like that. She had trusted me with her feelings and then shed them like sweaty clothes before a bath. 

 

I smiled. I already loved her but this burst of acceptance for what life offered her endeared her still more. I kept an eye on her during circle time, and while putting on pink mittens to go play in the snow. She laughed to lick the chilly chunks of ice we found in a frozen puddle. When her mom came to pick her up at lunch time she smothered her baby sister with kisses.

 

Sometimes I notice an area of my life that is frustrating. Why isn't it different? The obsession keeps me stuck with a view of my own shoes. But I thought of the little girl and her apple. She hopped over the anger and skipped into a smiley day. Could I be as wise as a four year old?

 

Today a friend told me about something she wishes her husband would do. He doesn't. The impasse causes her distress. 

 

But there are other days when it makes sense to accept what is.

 

"I'm here now."

 

 

Photo by Chara Odhner

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