Feeling Sappy

We've been watching "Charlotte's Web" tonight as a family (not the cartoon- but the one with actual animals voiced by actors). There's a part in which the mother is very concerned about Fern and her lack of contact with kids her age, choosing instead to spend all her time with animal friends on the farm. Mrs. Arable talks to the doctor about the problem (that basically boils down to Fern's imagination). The doctor confirms that there is indeed a condition. "It's called childhood, and sadly they'll grow out of it." I warned Tom ahead of time that that part gets my heart. I admit- I started tearing- not the boohooing ugly cry, but the tears were running down my cheeks and little, teeny, tiny weeps may have been ready to burst through. I fear that Sam and Jack are daily racing toward the end of childhood, and I simply don't want them to outgrow this "condition." Day by day (Sam especially) they seem to drop a little bit of the simplicity that makes them those sweet innocents and slip into maturing shadows of little ones. At times their childishness makes me crazy, but truly this sweet time of guilelessness, open hearts, faithfulness, non-contrived tales, boundless imaginations, wild abandon, and unabashed affection is a treasure that I wish could last for much much longer than it does.

Jack- ism

This morning Jack came downstairs a bit out of sorts. When I asked him if he slept OK, he told be he kinda had a bad night. Not "cause of my behavior" but because he had a "night- mary." His "night-mary" included monsters chasing him and eating him. That would scare me too. A little extra snuggle time (albeit on the kitchen floor) seemed to make the night-mary disappear, and it's all OK.