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iPhone Photo

It really is splendid when a child affects your life. There is still question if I should say "infect", but either way it is a good thing.

This image has resided on the outside of our garage door windows for over a quarter of a year. That may mean to you that I haven't washed the outside of our garage door in quite awhile (ever) or at least in the five years we have lived here. But to me, this presented the opportunity to see this youths illustration and revisit some fond memories of how it came to be.

When we went out of town for our 10-day beach vacation in the first part of summer we had asked our neighbor to keep a watchful eye on our home and to feed our animals. Upon our return, we had this image drawn on our garage with the adolescent-styled faces smiling at us and welcoming my family home. This was a nice gesture that she had made for us and whether it was genuine delight that we would be returning or the relief she gained from knowing she would be free of the responsibility of caring for the animals we may never want to know. No matter what the purpose intended was, it still remains that I smile every time I see it – Yes, it is still there.

See, I was working on my laptop from the kitchen counter/bar, the children had started school recently after staying at home all summer with me, and the morning light was beautiful. I had a clear view from where I sat of the pane in the garage door in which the illustration was drawn. It is the east side of our home and the morning light was just skimming over the trees on the other side of our driveway creating the most remarkable light penetrating through the glass and directly toward me. I just happened to look up at it at this point of the morning and it was stunningly back lit! 

Now I can think of many reasons I may not have seen this earlier in the season: the sun's angle would have been coming in differently, the foliage was fuller, maybe I sat a little to the right of where I was at that time. But, in fact, I believe all of these to be less likely than the simple fact that I had at least 3 children under foot most of the summer, and sometimes more! Yeah, I was a little distracted.

I really enjoy my children, and all of their friends. I must say that I miss them now that I sit here in a house that is so very quiet, lest that of snoring dogs. But it gives me time to reflect, engage and pursue. I don't know when I may get around to washing off the window, and it may very well be there for quite some time. At least until the next owner of this house decides to let it go. But it helps me to center myself in ways I will not try to explain here and now. Suffice to say, the image is only one of many representations of my life and how children are a big part of how I enjoy this world!