My boys.
The other day, I went for an afternoon walk with my boys and wondered again how it is possible to love people this much. They were all edged in light, quite literally, because it was the golden hour before sunset, and they climbed on boulders and pounded grains they found with stones. “Mom! We made flour!” We were in the withered corn of the last season. Things are drying out now. The huge teak leaves are scattered along the road. I like to hit them with my tire when I drive my motorbike. It’s a satisfying crunch.
I had the opportunity to go away for a week with my friend Ro. A friend of hers gifted us with transportion to get down to an island in the south. (What a gift.) Before we left, I was so tired that I couldn’t get my brain to work to figure out how to pack my stuff. It has been a long haul and every part of me was tired at the end of this long/short/warped/endless year.
It was beautiful to be with Ro. She’s a good friend, and used to living with an introvert, so we found ways to have solitude and togetherness. I got up every morning when the stars were still out, walked for an hour every day, lay on the sand, and swam in the gentle sea of the gulf of Thailand. There were night flowering trees and sea eagles. A chipmunk came very close to us while we sat on pool lounges, jumping up beside us and putting his paws on our legs or stomachs, nose quivering, looking for food.
We snorkeled and made friends with fishes. We made seedy porridge for breakfast. And we went through most of the sessions of our beautiful friend Winnie’s retreat (which was excellent.)
The trip home was a songtaew, ferry, songtaew, bus, train, plane, Grab car, and car, over two days. The first day was the public transport day, a day of masks and much hand sanitizer. The second day was running errands and finally driving home in the evening. I didn’t even get in the gate before Honey was running around me in circles. Then Wookie came running and then my boys found me and I got the Isaac hug I had been missing. (Rather than turning his head to the side, he just buries his face in your tummy.) Solomon and Leafy joined and we had a long four-person hug.
And that is the point of my story. These boys. I love my sons.
They walked in light and played in light. They are as beautiful as people can get, with soft hearts and quick brains. They are completely different from one another. Oh, how I love them.
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