Children of Summer

 

Noah and Faith with Tabitha!

Usually, I write my column in the light of dawn as it stretches into morning. This time it is a bit different. Perhaps because late night is the quiet time or the only time I have to put words on paper.

The four Charleston Children are here. They came clamoring into my life by way of Allegiant Airlines for the month of June. Oh, to get everything ready for the loves of my life…each room, each dresser, each closet and each bed scrubbed and cleaned ready for these children. I love having everything in place for them…books, puzzles, games, crayons, markers…so that they will have plenty to do. Of course, I am never sure where this journey will take us! What lovely ideas will they have for their Nannie Summer?

Their arrival is no less than if a queen or king stepped into my parlor. The sad part about children living so far away is that I cannot see them on a regular basis, but the best part it that they stay for long lengths of time!

The twins, now eight, go from puzzle to books to Harley’s grave (we still mourn our cat!), to the Faith and Noah tree. We planted a twig two years ago, and now it towers over their heads. The older girls go straight to their rooms making sure their phones are hooked up to Wi-Fi!

Usually, they do not all visit at the same time so it makes the activities easier for me, but this year we are a family of five and I try to keep everyone happy. Holly and Brianna just want to hang out with their cousins and go have coffee at Caleo. And, “please can you teach us to make homemade bread?” I nod that I can do that, of course. Faith and Noah are into dragons this year. Well, I didn’t know that. We have watched “How to Train your Dragon,” getting ready to visit the Brokaw Friday night to see the new movie.

The library has kept them occupied and challenged as they have attended the events and the shows filling out their reading log well ahead of time. They received a great book bag full of coupons for every fun kid restaurant in town…Scoops, DQ, Culvers, Pizza Hut. So, if you have seen us tooling around at dusk, we are just using up the coupons!

The Angola Parks and Recreation holds a special place for us all. Tabitha Griva works wonders with kids. Faith and Noah love attending camp. This year it was just soccer camp. The first time I enrolled them in camp, I brought a lawn chair to sit and watch. Tabitha told me to go home. I know I probably didn’t want to leave them, but it was the right thing to do. Now they jump out of the car ready to greet their new friends.          

We attended lots of graduation parties. Last Saturday night we were driving home the back way. It was late, and it was dark with not a single car on the road. Something flashed about on my windshield! Wonder of all wonders, it was a firefly. I turned to look at the woods next to the road…hundreds of flashing lights. I rolled down the back windows, “Look!” I exclaimed. The beauty, as always, took my breath away. Since there were no lights on the road or even any house lights as far as I could see, I stopped my car and turned off the lights. We sat in silence just watching the beauty of the world flash before us. I love knowing my life still has room for magic and for fireflies. I turned the car back on with the lights and drove slowly home as we watched this show. These are the moments. The teachable moments. The moments that live on when everyone goes home and the Nannie time is over.

These are the moments I write about so often. The moments we can’t miss with children or grandchildren, or even just for us. We can’t lose the magic. We all had it once so find it once again. Marvel at the night sky…at the blinking fireflies…at ice cream melting down your chin.

As for my children, this is our last week together. By next week, I will have pulled the house apart finding their trinkets hidden in nooks and crannies. But for now, we are here, we are together and nothing in the world makes me happier.