like stars falling in the heavens.
stars twinkle in the blue black sky, before the sun pokes it's head about the horizon, erasing the visible universe in it's brilliance. the earth is silent, breath held, except the crickets who serenade those few souls drifting softly over the dew glistened grass.
cool air fills my lungs, lightning to nerve endings, prying my eyes open...how many more of these?
pops and creeks escape in sighs from the boards beneath my feet as i shift my weight, moving down the steps of the porch into the yard. eggs, the colors of gasoline rainbows, shift in the basket swaying against my leg. delicately i place them behind bushes and tufts of grass, along window sills and sidewalks, beneath the bench at my meditation spot, by squiggy the porcelain snail that perpetually bobs his head.
cool air crawls across my back, a ghost across my grave, tearing my eyes up...how many more of these?
thumps and bumps, little feet pound in the hall and on the stairs, the sounds of their waking filled with excitement for what is to come. little fingers wrap around the twined wicker handle of baskets as they rush to the door in search of hidden treasures. here and there, and in some areas only broken bits of multicolored shell where the deer have had their own easter snack. we have more than enough, so they are welcome.
cool air nips at pajama bottoms, a gentle giggle on their face, smiling across my eyes...how many more of these?
there are those moments, as parents of kids between 5 and 7 when you are holding onto your childhood through them, while they boldly step away from you. it is scary, yet exciting. your belief in fairy tales rekindled is now smoldering. try as you might you can not keep them in your arms, as they squirm away.
like stars falling in the heavens.
this was written for the prompt at magpie tales.
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101 comments:
Beautifully written Brian. I could feel the cool air "crawling up my back". So poignant! Children grow so quickly and before you know it they are walking away from you with children of their own. Sigh!!
Hugs
SueAnn
!
very impressive Brian kids do grow quickly, loved this :)
Very nice. Truly captured that time in all our lives when we start to let go and our parents start to be brave.
Very beautiful, Brian. "how many more of these?" you ask. May you have many, many more. Who knows in a few decades maybe we'll be blogging and commenting about repeating these rites of passage for old and young alike with our grandchildren. Love the idea of easter eggs being shared with deers. How evocative!
Beautiful, Brian.
Especially, "cool air nips at pajama bottoms, a gentle giggle on their face, smiling across my eyes...how many more of these?"
That was just lovely. The world does regain some small magic when viewed through the eyes of our children, does it not? And it's the bittersweet curse of the parents to know that these fairy tale moments aren't infinite...
Without children...just think how it would be....The world would be soooo boring...you see? :)
Ooohh... goose-pimples! That was absolutely beautiful Brian, so moving! I feel all funny inside!
I remember thinking the very same thing as my sons grew in age. Time flies by so quickly!
But we still have the memories!!!
Yes, Brian. You certainly portrayed exactly what I was thinking yesterday morning, while four generations sat (and stood) watching one little five-year-old hunt for the 50+ eggs that were hidden for her to find. I looked over at my Mom, almost 80, and wondered what she must be thinking at this winter in her life. What a contrast between someone whose life is in spring and someone whose life is in winter. How quickly time goes by. Enjoy it to the fullest. I am in autumn---my favorite season of all. It saddens me to think how "close" I am. I am trying to live it to the fullest however! Thanks for the gentle reminder.
The giggles and the bare toes on damp morning grass and baskets of eggs. I did enjoy those times when my kids were growing up.
I sometimes wish we could have kept them there, between 5 and 7. But having had Easter Dinner at my youngest son's home yesterday, and enjoyed his family, I guess I'm glad they grew up.
I especially liked "eggs, the color of gasoline rainbows", Brian. A great take on the prompt.
Oh yes ... how many more of these? So hard to give up what is so precious ... yet you will discover that while those special times do not return ... other special connections between parent and child replace them. Thank goodness memories last forever ... and thank goodness for grandchildren, where you get to revisit everything you thought was gone forever.
Hang on ... Brian ... these losses are replaced by other gifts ... different, but still sweet.
"Gasoline rainbows"...you never cease to amaze me!
I can so hear your love and your heart for your dear children. Beautifully written!
Just beautiful! Thank you SO much for the prayers!!!
So true, and so well put...Someone told me once that all adults have inner children that still need understanding, protection and love...Perhaps that is why many of us try so hard to give those things to the flesh and blood kids in our lives...
Again, Brilliant with a capital 'B'.
This was one of your stories that I just had to read twice.
I alway leave your posts "feeling" something. What a gift you have.
Well done, my friend. ;)
My favorite so far. I can't believe how much I miss those days. My own two grew so fast, thank you for reminding me so vividly.
Kat
Damn... that's gorgeous. It really does go by too quickly.
Brian,
I know I just said this, but thank you so much for praying for me. You have know idea how much that means to me. I am having a VERY difficult time and to know that somone that has never met me cares enough to pray about my situation, I am speechless. I am so blessed to have you as a blog buddy!!! Thanks again for everything.
-Bridgette
fairy tales become just that. too old to believe, too young not to try and make new ones.
True!
You had me with those "gasoline rainbows".
Kat
eggs, the colors of gasoline rainbows...delicately i place them behind bushes and tufts of grass, along window sills and sidewalks, beneath the bench at my meditation spot,...
very dynamic and vivid...
your words jumped out of the screen and I see everything alive...
magical Description is your nature,
I can never catch up...
see you later!
Happy Tuesday!
I loved being part of this easter egg hunt Brian, and so true that the easter egg hunt part of our childhood stays with us always.......:-) Hugs
Ah your Easter Egg hunt! Treasure them while you can. Someday you'll be able to hide them for the grandchildren. :-)
What is so glorious about children is
that if you're doing it right you work yourself out of a job. then they grow up....then
as grandparents it's not a job and you get to have fun ...
if you're blessed like us you will have great grand children.
They were right when they added the grand then the great grand to the children.
Because it just keeps on getting better.
Great.
Jim
Brian, I have missed your writing so much during my break. My friend and I were talking about this very same thing during vacation. This portrays the time period so much better than I conveyed in our conversation. I'm going to send Blondie the link.
I know I should say something about this wonderful piece, but instead I'm thinking of your wife and how enormously proud and in love with you she must be...
To have a husband who appreciates all the nuances of life, of his family, and retells the splendid moments with such vivid and dreamy brushstrokes.
Very cool, dude.
Wow. So compelling. And so true. I can't stand this growing up thing. Kaish had a sleepover in a tent last night in the backyard. I woke up at 3 and raced downstairs and out the door only to hear him happily snoring with his friends. It is so hard to let them go, isn't it?
Funny how my older two seemed to grow up too fast and my youngest, with all our struggles getting him an education, seemed to take forever until we moved here almost 5 years ago. Now I can't believe how far he's come and Grown! No tears when this one graduated high school last May. Just SMILES! Thanks for all your comments on my site. Really appreciate them, esp. from obviously a Great parent!!
HUGS,
Coreen
I can just imagine how fun Christmas morning would be with children.
I used to decorate the neighbors yard as if the Easter bunny had come. I left out paper footprints and hung plastic eggs from one of the trees and then hid a whole bunch of stuff. I loved doing that.
This brought tears to my eyes. Very sweet and poignant. Beautifully written!
Wow...love this one...so sad, but yet so true. They're gone before we know it and we're left with our memories...hopefully they are too.
Oh the days of Easter Bunnies and Santa! Enjoy every second with those sweet boys of yours!!!
One year, long ago, our youngest came to me with a very somber face, telling me that he thought that there might not be a Santa Claus. He asked me if that was true. After much hesitation, I told him that, indeed, there was no Santa. He shook his head and began to walk away. He hesitated and looked back at me and said, "I guess there's no Easter Bunny either, huh?" I shook my head and told him that indeed there was no Easter Bunny either.
A look of shock and anguish crossed his face. "No Easter Bunny? There's got to be an Easter Bunny!"
It caught me off guard! This half boy and half young man could handle the truth about Santa, but not his dear Easter Bunny!
We laugh about it now, but for years I felt so guilty!
Hold those boys and enjoy them!
Now, this is one of my favorites...you captured the feelings so perfectly! Brilliant.
Beautiful Brian
Enjoy these precious moments with your dear ones -- for this too shall pass... living and loving the moments as parents we can enjoy in the enchantment of childhood by creating these special moments - so enjoy dear man enjoy.
Joanny
That's so beautiful and so true. Every parent knows it so well.
Lovely. Reminds me of one of my favorite books, Dandelion Wine, by Ray Bradbury. Thanks for stopping by. I'm pretty proud of my twin too.
You've captured the magic and fleeting moments of childhood. My kids are 7 and 8.. and I hang onto each precious moment...
So lovely!
I am trying to stretch these times with my sweeties into an eternity. Time does go by too quickly. Beautiful read.
My oldest is hitting seven in a few months. How is it that time goes by so damn fast.
That was beautiful.
I enjoyed this one Brian. Very beautiful indeed. Children sure can fill every place with joy and happiness.
Have a good day!:)
I wish i Was between 5 and 7. Then a thought hits me ' can I be that today?' - why not?
I really enjoyed this. It is amazing what parents do to make the most wonderful memories for their children. I AM not a parent but make a real fine Aunt. Have a good day Brian, take care.
"when you are holding onto your childhood through them..."
Beautifully written as always, Brian.
Beautiful blog, have a nice day Radka.
Oh, so poetic and gentle. You always manage to capture a moment in life and make it last forever in your writing.
xo
Zuzana
The captured essence of childhood most profoundly felt;
"little fingers wrap around the twined wicker handle of baskets"
in your amazing poem: "star falling".
Please never let go of those dream wishes on stars and seeing life through a child's vision of the world! Simply beautiful! Thank-you Brian!
I loved this...made me a little misty thinking back how quickly my two little boys turned into young men. This is simply beautiful. Thank you for bringing back memories this morning.
I loved this post. You captured a feeling that I understand. At once so uplifting and so melancholy.
Nothing is as delightful or, if you're trying to sleep, as irritating as little feet pounding.
Never thought of this... "eggs, the colors of gasoline rainbows," so true! So true and such a beautiful image of brilliant color.
I want to ALWAYS believe in fairy tales...always. The magic of being 5-7...so SWEET.
I know with all the comments you certainly don't need my feedback. I'm leaving it anyway. Beautifully written! So glad I had the chance to read this.
beautiful Brian! had me a little teared up...this was our first Easter with no egg hunt, or Easter baskets. the kids are now "too old".
but there will be grandkids someday. :)
Cherish the moments!
what?! did you place the eggs? Not the easter bunny? Really? now this is a shock to me :p. Did you know that the eggs are brought to Belgium with the church bells that return on Easter from Rome after a 3 day silence? and then the bunnies do the detailed hiding which obviously is too hard for a bell to do.
did the dear eat chocolate eggs? or were they no chocolate eggs?
praise yourself lucky you did not have to complete the job in the pouring rain as was the case in Belgium this year.
so beautiful, so true. the older they get, the more you realize the dichotomy -- happiness and sadness as they discover themselves.
exceptionally well done,
i hope you and your family had a beautiful Easter filled with precious memories.
smiles,
Brian...sooooo true!!!! My oldest is at that age...... LOVE THIS!!!!!
Ooooo Brian, I just love it! I'm remembering all the magical moments with my own children. Thanks for reminding me with your wonderful Magpie.
I love the comment about wanting to hold on to them, but the squirm away. So true. None of mine liked to be cuddled too much when then were little. Now they are all very affectionate, but still wanting to be their own people. My oldest, 17, is going through separation anxiety, as well as his parents.
Children do grow up so quickly. You always make me feel like Im right there!
Absolutely gorgeous.
Beautifully expressed Brian. It seems like yesterday when my girls were small. Time and fairy tales, like stars falling in the heavens.
Beautiful Brian. At those age, our children literally live at other people's house because at our home there was no playstations whatever. That was then, now, they have EVERYTHING. A parent trying to make up, that's me.
I could feel the pleasure as the eggs were placed ready to be found. I could feel the excitement too. Brilliantly written.
You may not be able to hold them in your arms forever, but they will always hold you in their hearts.
This was excellent. Very lovely. As kids we enjoy every tiny little things and getting muddy and sweaty and yucky was the best part of that and we shouldn't lose it we should try and be kids once in a while again! ;)
Just exquisite! So beautifully written it gave me goosebumps. I can so relate to this piece as I watch my girls, teens now, and think about how it just seemed like yesterday that they were small enough to sit in my lap. They grow up so fast.
You make me cry, Brian.
Hold on tightly, take time to do nothing but watch and record.
I thought I would never forget those moments.
Your boys will read your work and when they have their own, will pass this on...
I thought at first that it was 5 o'clock and 7 o'clock!
Lovely piece
love is innocent,
your love for your kids is pure,
they will always be your babies no matter how old they are, you are sensitive and rich in emotion in seeing your kids grow...what a great father.
growing older, growing wiser...
there are growing pains for every and each human being, hope that you
light up, smile and encourage your boys, and shower them with wisdom and joy.
Best!
That last paragraph brought a little dampness to the corners of my eye.
Gasoline rainbows...yes, that is exactly what the look like.
So true. This was just great! Thanks!!
Vivid imagery! 'how many more of these' has such a poignant ring. Beautiful!
We lose our innocence in small subtle ways..usually taught by the world...
My childhood memories of between 5 and 7 centered around shooting 8-Ball down at Louie's Pool Emporium!
(I had my own Cue)
They come back again Brian with grand-children although it is still slightly different as ours was from our children's.
http://jingleyanqiu.wordpress.com/2010/04/06/the-celebrate-poet-of-march-award-announcement-for-nominations/
for your reference,
hope you win!
Aww Brian this was so sweet. This is the first Easter where we haven't got together as a family and had an Easter Egg hunt! We're all growing up now and in a strange way, I miss the 5-7's old enough to be freewheeling but still in need of a hug and protection. Hope you had a wonderful Easter. Don't miss them too much while they're away!
nice...you'll be glad you are writing some of this down, because the years go by, and the memories fade.
that cool to hear! I'm glad it went well, it helps bring back the air in our lungs, eh?
Blessings!
Nice imagery! Made me want to grab a basket myself! Ah, the simpler times in life!
Very nice!! Children grow up too fast!! I want to keep my grandson little forever but also love watching him grow. As long as my girls were living at home the Easter Bunny and Santa visited us every year!!
This was brilliant.
Moving and to the core true.
so glad I've found your space
What a flow, Brian. Just beautiful.
Beautiful, sad and true. They grow up so fast. Sigh.
Loved this.
/Jo.
Congrats on the POTW!
congrats on POTW
you describe the passing of time, of watching it thru our children so beautifully
Yep. Mine are 3 and 7... I hear you. Great post. Congratulations on the potw.
My wife is the official egg-hider, though she does it at night and uses refillable plastic eggs. My older was invited to a HUGE neighborhood hunt, where there is a golden egg containing a $20 each year. He complained to me that he never finds that one. I said to him
Do you know what was in Easter eggs when I was your age?
No.
EGGS.
That shut him up quick.
This was wonderful, Brian. Beautifully written, and providing a memory time-travel device, all at once.
Congratulations on the post of the week mention over at Hilary's blog!
We get older, and think it is somehow cooler to stop believing in magic. We're funny creatures.
This is so lovely. It brought a little tear to my eye as I remembered the days when my own still believed in such things as the Easter Bunny, Santa, the Tooth Fairy, and the infallibility of Mom and Dad.
Congrats on your POTW!
Congrats on your POTW!
How poignant! My old eyes became blurry before I was halfway through, but the tears began flowing wehn I read, ..."how many more of these?"
(By the way, my 27 year-old SCHOOL TEACHER DAUGHTER insisted on hunting eggs this Easter!)
Congrats on POTW!
That was very nice! Lovely descriptions! They wiggle away fast...but their only a thought, a memory away.
congrats on the POTW
ADORABLE.
Just stopping back to give a huge congratulations on POTW from Hilary!! Well deserved, for sure.
As always, beautifully written Brian. I'm right there with ya, ...hangin' on , yet knowing I have to give them the ability to fly away.
I'll be hanging on too - probably for way too long. This post only made me feel a teeny bit sad for the coming years as my children grow (which will also be a happy and remarkable journey). :)
http://jingleyanqiu.wordpress.com/2010/04/13/because-she-is-plain-magpie-tale/
I tied,
thank you for the comments today!
you make me smile!
Dear Brian:
I always enjoy reading your work,
you seem born a writer, fascinating,
entertaining, and astonishing...
Thank God you came to my blog months ago.
I learn so much from you.
Happy Monday Evening!
Smiles!
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