I always knew this moment would come, yet as I sit here I can’t help but feel it’s knowledge that should be shared not saved. When my kids were little more times than not I would find myself marveling and honoring the innocence of their youth. Living in all the moments of how pure and simple life is when your experiences haven’t yet made you jaded.
It truly was (and is) the most magical of times. Eyes bright, hearts open and all moments seeming to be the most magical. That was life with two littles.
Recently our family has been on a major purge. Finally discarding things which we no longer need or no longer serve us. All cabinets and storage containers fair game in the purge.
In so doing, I came upon an old phone which somehow still had photos on it. Unsure of whose it was or from how long ago, I began flipping through the photos and that’s what prompted this week’s column.
Going seven years back, videos my son and daughter had made while at their grandmothers or playing in our neighborhood park. Fun stuff. Moments captured that mom may have missed.
Videos and photos of our first batch of chickens, just baby chicks, newly brought home from Tractor Supply - my son was in love.
The chickens, at that time, were his family project. In charge of their feeding, water and care, each and every day (and night) he would “go check the chickens.”
As stories go, there was also the one family “mishap” as one of the family labs found a hole in the coop fencing and created a chicken massacre, as it were. Proud of her ‘catch’ she was discovered by his younger sister who was taking an even younger friend over to “see our chickens.”
Back we would go as a family to begin again with some new chicks, this time however my son a little less invested. Still tending to his chore, the gleam in his eye for these sweet little creatures a bit dulled.
So go the lessons of life.
As I sometimes share with my two children, everything is fine and great until it isn’t. Not to be mistaken, we are not the family to sit around and dwell on negative or unfortunate occurrences. We pull up our boot straps and forge forward with the best of them.
Yet there’s just something special about living in that innocence and glimmer of an unsuspecting child’s eye.
Now with many friends being called: granny, Mimi, grandma or Nana it’s fun to be a part of that chapter as well. My own, far from that season in their lives, I’m grateful for the time I’ve been able to share with friends’ wee ones.
So here’s the point in all of this.
When my two were little, the smart phone was just gaining ground as the “it” thing to have. Social media was still accessed more from a desktop than a handheld device and I’d be lying if I didn’t share, I’m grateful for both of those things.
So much of life now is consumed by devices and looking down; don’t miss the moments of innocence. They are fleeting and they are magical.
The sound of a giggle, the brightness in the eyes and the look of wonder at first accomplishing something, you can’t get those moments back.
Even the simplest thing of hearing a pre-teen on a video talking about some baby chicks - priceless.
Of course we all love photos, treasured memories via video, but every now and again do yourself a favor. Put the phone away, pretend it’s 1990 and simply live in the moment. Most of all and trust me when I say it, don’t blink, it goes faster than any of us can properly articulate. Enjoy!
Teresa Hammond is a staff reporter for The Oakdale Leader, The Riverbank News and The Escalon Times. She may be reached at thammond@oakdaleleader.com or by calling 209-847-3021.
