. . . lying on my tummy on the trampoline after cavorting wildly with Claire and Lilah. They both climb aboard my back and begin to fix my hair. I enter fully into the moment: dove coos and church bells fill my ears; pink flowers growing alongside the trampoline press their faces into the net, and yellow ones smile from across the yard; the girls' hands are gentle, their voices happy and eager; the sun is warm and mild on my back and my bare feet. "It's your wedding," says Lilah as she spreads my hair across my back. "No, she already had a wedding," says Claire, and then adds, "Oh, yes, but this is her next wedding."
. . . getting caught in the rain on my run. I leave in the mist, deciding to go on a new route which I think will be a bit longer. I follow familiar streets to the canal, then turn left instead of right to run along the canal path. I emerge back onto the streets, away from the cover of the trees lining the canal, and the rain starts to come down hard. It is not very cold, and soon I am drenched and happy. Even though I miss my turn so my new route is even longer than I expected, I come home delighted and refreshed.
. . . making Cole grin. Sometimes I just catch his eye as he rides along in the stroller, and then toss him a big smile; sometimes I let him sit on my lap and spread my arms wide, then listen to him giggle as he waits for them to come dashing in and lock him in an embrace.
. . . looking down into Lilah's trusting, blue eyes, flanked by blond curly pigtails, while she says, "I want to carry you." I scoop her up or squat down so she can scramble onto my back, and all her sweet and silly confidences pour right into my ear as we travel on together.
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