I had expectations about the sorts of things motherhood would bring. But one of the best surprises is the flood of memories about my own childhood that I experience through Madeline. Like the other day when Madeline put her foot on top of mine -- I was transported to when my dad would walk in the door from work and I would stand on his feet, clutching his knees, while he walked around the kitchen. Or when I wrapped my entire body around one of his legs, clinging while he dragged me along, pretending that he didn't know I was there and asking my mom if she had seen me. As the decades role by and our lives get busier and busier, these snippets of memory are so unexpected and fun -- what a gift to re-experience the joy of childhood, even if it's just for a moment!So yesterday, Madeline and I went to the park to play. In the 25 seconds it took me to pick up a stick and throw it for Maple, Madeline picked up something that looked like a giant brown pea pod, broke it open and started eating the thick, green oozing fluid inside. The only reason I knew it had happened is because it was all over her hands and her lips. Oh dear God. I realized in that second what my mom must have felt like when she came outside and found me licking sap from a tree because I thought it was maple syrup. Or when I climbed up on the kitchen counter and ate an entire bottle of children's Flintstones vitamins. The emergency room visit for that dog bite and all the injuries while camping, tobaggoning and playing with the neighborhood boys flooded back. Yep, I was a tomboy alright.
Rob did so
me digging around, and found that Madeline's snack was harmless. Good ol' Roger, the Peoria Park District's City Arborist, told Rob the pod was from a Kentucky Coffee Tree, named because the pioneers used to brew something resembling coffee from it. Interesting. I guess Roger's good at trees and history.So it seems that Miss Madeline may be a tomboy at heart and possibly already love high heels. Could this be my proudest moment?
No comments:
Post a Comment