My friend Tammy, at “It’s a Wonderful Life” is hosting a new meme, so here is my contribution to “Milestone Monday” While this is not a current milestone in the life of our family, it is a moment engraved on my heart & never fails to bring a smile.
As I’ve referred to several times, we are involved in Scottish Country Dancing- all three of us take lessons weekly, while Sam & I frequently perform at various Highland Games throughout the season. Four years ago, when he was 12 years old, Sam attended his first Children’s Ball, which was held near Christmas time. He looked so handsome, dressed in his Black Watch kilt, tuxedo shirt & bow tie; I remember thinking how much he had grown-up, seemingly overnight. I was working with the other mothers, setting up the tables for tea, when I heard the music cues to form new sets for the next dance; I paused to watch the children, ages 6 to 16, dressed in their Christmas finery, find partners & line up to begin.
That’s when I saw Sam; he walked over to a young lady sitting on the sidelines of the dance floor. She was a bashful & timid girl, & my heart stopped as I watched Sam bow politely & hold out his hand to her, and then led her to the dance floor. I stood transfixed as they went through the dance, watching these young people swinging & flowing through the figures, smiling at & encouraging one another. My eyes filled with tears as I watched Sam escort his shy little partner back to her seat, bow again, then bring her some punch & cookies- this was my little boy, being so kind & gracious, behaving like the gentleman I hoped he would become. What a gift, to be given a glimpse of man is would someday be, & to know that we have done something right in raising him.
In other Garden news, West High JV Tennis did respectably at the tournament this weekend, placing 7th overall- this is a real achievement, as up until 8 weeks ago, these boys had never really played tennis before. Chris & I went to watch for a couple of hours (probably the only time I will- the tension was too much for me :P), then headed back to do a little spit & swipe of the house before picking up our new exchange student, Kenta. He is a very outgoing & friendly boy, but with very limited English skills- we have been playing “dueling dictionaries” all weekend in order to communicate, but all in good fun. The boys hit it off right away, sharing a love of video games (duh) & martial arts.
The other excitement came Sunday morning, when Kristy, Chris’ sister-in-law, arrived for a fly-by visit with all four children in tow- Mary (8), Bailey (6), Parker (5), & Tristan (9 mo). They showed up at church during first service- Chris was an usher this week & was suddenly tackled by the three older kids in the lobby. They joined us for the rest of the first service & through the Worship set of second service, then we headed over to the park for a picnic & good chin-wag. They were on their way back home to Oregon, having come down to visit Kristy’s grandparents, so the kids ran around to burn off some energy, while I played with the baby & Kristy shared the latest stories of the kids. Dave (Chris’ brother), Kristy, & the three older kids all take Tae Kwan Do, & she shared the funniest story about Parker. He is a little pistol & has attitude to spare; this particular evening at class, he was feeling pretty ornery- another student, a boy about 13, was walking by & Parker decided to trip him, which caused the boy to hit his elbow & head against the wall. The older boy reported this event (Parker described it as “tattling”) to the instructor, who pulled Parker aside & admonished him for his actions; he told Parker to “Go to J & tell him you are sorry.” Parker then put his hands on his hips, gave the instructor the gimlet eye, & stated very loudly; “First of all, I’m not; second, I’m five, so J needs to get over it!” Lordy, McGordy! They have their hands full with that one- I would have never let my kids get away with it, but Kristy has a different parenting style; I’m just thankful that they live in Oregon & I don’t have to be around the kids too often, otherwise I would have to say something & probably start a family feud. We saw them off around 1:00, blessed quiet once again descending on our little oasis; I love my family, but I’ve outgrown the frenetic energy of young children & am repeatedly thankful for the kindness of distance.
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