Friday, May 22, 2009

Kids and Play


It's been a busy and somewhat stressful week at work for me - what else is new. And my workdays are bracketed by heavy doses of two little kids who require lots of energy and who try my patience. So by Thursday afternoon, you can forgive me for dragging a little.

But when Amy suggested she meet me at day care and we four have a little picnic on the Penn campus, I leapt at the invitation. We ended up at our usual patch of grass, just off the main pedestrian strip through campus, on the western fringe closest to our house. Amy packed all sorts of goodies, with enough variety that Aaron and Jada actually did eat something, despite their legendary finickiness.

After they were done, I kept plowing through the lunch box while the kids literally rolled around in the grass and dirt. We were planning on giving them baths when we got home, so we just let them go. And it was nice to see them just be kids, luxuriating in a gorgeous day and in the finest natural elements an urban setting can provide.

With all the seriousness of my day-to-day responsibilities, it's good to watch your kids just play. Maybe someday I'll tell myself that I'll give myself a bath when we get home, and, thusly freed, roll around in the dirt and grass right alongside them.

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