"To My Children"
...u. When my legs are tired And it’s hard to stand Or walk the steady pace That I would like to do, Please take me carefully By my hand And guide me now As I so often did with you. Dear Emily, From time to time I am reminded of Christmas 1990. I can remember you sitting on my lap, and me reading a book to you that “Santa” had given you. You were very excited about Christmas and all of your presents. We had played all day long with your new stuffed animals and dolls. You were starting to wind down and it was almost “nap time”. The part that is forever etched into my memory, is while you were sitting on my lap, I was thinking about your future and the changes that you were going to go through. I can remember your boney little butt on my leg and thinking, “wow, my little girl is totally potty trained”. I can remember that you were wearing little denim overalls with a pink cotton shirt underneath, and I was thinking how quickly you were growing up. I can remember the smell of your newly washed hair, and the fact that it smelled like Johnson and Johnson “No Tears Baby Shampoo“. I can remember all of these things and much more. I was thinking about how quickly one changes from a little pixie who believes in Santa Claus, to an adult who has adult problems and none of the advantages of youthful imagination and beliefs. What reminds me of that Chris...