Babies

Having spent the last 4 days with a baby, the thing about babies is they don't know the rules of the world.  Or they don't completely understand the rules of the world.  The rule of gravity, for instance, is pretty constant and my grand baby gets it to some extent.  She won't dive head first off the steps for instance. If she happens to reposition herself in a position that defies gravity, you had better be there.  She is on the very brink between ambulatory and crawling.  She stands and balances for several seconds as long as she doesn't think about it.  Cute dresses are handicaps to crawling so she improvises with a crawl/four legged trot.  The rule of ownership does not apply.  Personal boundaries? Smersonal smoundaries!  A hand goes down into your shirt and a foot goes down your waistband into your jeans.  She brings up things from between the couch cushions that are better left down there.  She opens drawers and enjoys emptying them and depositing every content on the floor. You end up seeing stuff you have not looked at in ten or more years.  You give her something to eat. She mouths it and offers it back to you drenched in her saliva.  You buy popcorn to eat on the cruise on the Taylors Falls Princess and she expects to share equally.  Never having popcorn before she grabs a handful like an adult and tries to cram it all into her mouth at once - just like I do.  Seeing the world through the eyes of a child is invigorating and challenging and eye opening.  I feel younger. I feel older. I am energized.  I am exhausted.  The muscles in my arms are stronger. The muscles in my heart are stronger too. 

Here we are on the floor admiring the canary.  It's not often I see the bird from this angle.