Dear Ari,We woke today to the most beautiful morning. You said "want to go outside" almost before you were awake, and we wandered out together into the still-cool morning. We made our way to the swings in the barn and you were content to swing for ages, singing and chattering to yourself and to me, regularly asking to go "higher, higher" and "Mama swing beside me."
We swung there together, the sky blue the grass green, the air so wonderfully cool and alive and you listed all the things you could see- "trees, and buttercups and mountains and birds and daisy flowers ("fowlers") and sun, and houses and grass and clouds..." both of us loving every bit of the view.
It is such a joy these times with you, when I can calm my mind from rushing off to the next task (oh, I really should go and open the greenhouse, and grab the laundry to put on the line, and remember to tell Perry this or that,) and just be here with you. You are so naturally good at this, so right-here-in-this-moment, so completely in love with life. Living beside you, being your mama, is so full of lessons and delight. Challenges too of course, but right here on the swing beside my joyous, sweet little boy, it is utter joy.
And what I can give you is this day. The time to just sit on the swings until you ask to get down, maybe 5 minutes, maybe an hour from now. I can give you this barn and these swings and the green grass and the buttercups. I can give you days filled with polliwogs in the pond and baby bears up the poplar tree, and puddles and rhubarb and snowshoes and the moon. I can give you this childhood on our (not)commune where you can put your own boots on the wrong feet and just open the door and go out. Where you can greet the farm dogs and the friends that are our neighbours. It's not perfect my boy, but on this green morning swinging beside you, this life seems awfully close to perfection.
There is nothing like a good swing!! Though I find as I get older I start to feel sick - maybe it's just that I am not doing it enough!!
ReplyDeleteI am glad that the sun is shining!!
that was the most beautiful words...I will remember these words tomorrow when my little one wakes up...thankyou
ReplyDeleteLovley, Mama words.
ReplyDeleteI'm back around some, on a really, painfully slow, old computer, but happy to be able to check in with people every once in a while.
ReplyDeleteMy little bird lovers have those bird cards too! :)
I've wanted to write to you for so long. Reading your blog always makes me think of my early days as a mother. Such a sweet special time. Your babies are going to be almost exactly the same distance apart as my first two were. I'm glad that you cherish this time so much, it will be gone in the blink of an eye. You will be a family of 4, oh, so very soon. Two little ones is great. Three is fabulous. And I am so, so very excited about number four! But I still sometimes get a little choked up when I read about you spending full days, just the two of you, eating mangoes and baking. I think of when it was just me and my little guy. And then me and my little guy and the bitty one in my belly. I'm so blessed to have all of my children here with me. But things get louder and fuller and there are so many more dynamics and relationships and energy being pushed and pulled in many directions. There is so much life and joy and love. But there is something about those early days that was just so...simple...and intimate. I love that you are taking the time to appreciate it. And I love that you will do the same for the next phase, and all of it's over-whelming beauty.
you have brought tears to my eyes! such lovely, lovely photos and beautiful words.
ReplyDeleteThis is a beautiful letter. You should save it and show it to her when she is older.
ReplyDeletethanks for posting this, taisa. i'm so glad he has that sort of childhood and that sort of mama.
ReplyDeleteso beautiful! Ari is a lucky little boy.
ReplyDeleteMy, what a stunning view. I long for a swing like that! Your blog is wonderful, thanks for the inspiration!
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