December 4 Wonder. How did you cultivate a sense of wonder in your life this year? (Author: Jeffrey Davis)
I listen to The Kid. Yeah yeah children are full of wonder, that’s no surprise, but it can be squashed or missed if you don’t take the time to listen (trust me, as a busy single working parent, it is an exercise in self-discipline to allow her interests as well as mine to shine) .
Take, for example, a recent walk to school. We spy a large bird, black with accents of white and blue on the wings. I point this out to her and she says “It looks like an orca. It must be an orca bird.” I’m quietly delighted by this observation. Then I point out that the bird is hopping around on the ground. So she says “It must be a rabbit orca bird!” I love that she was not only unfazed by my attempt to stump her but she ran with it.
Her imagination, if you are lucky enough to know her, is incredible. She thinks our Christmas tree should be a bird hotel. She once wanted a ladder to reach a rainbow up in the sky. She doesn’t say her grandpa is the smartest man in the world; she says he is the man who thinks he is the smartest man in the world. She wants to bury me in the backyard because she plans to live in our house when she is a grown-up and wants to visit me every day. She can turn a scarf into a royal gown and blankets into a city. She wanted us to have a fireplace, so she drew us one. She told a friend that when coyotes come into our backyard, I put on a bear costume to scare the offenders away. Santa, werewolves, zombies, the tooth fairy and Easter Bunny are all regulars here.
Her world is wonder full. And I’m so grateful she lets me in.
p.s. I love that this prompt came on The Kid’s birthday. How fitting. I love you, sweet girl!
This month, I am participating in #reverb10. From the website: “Reverb 10 (#reverb10) … is an open online initiative that encourages participants to reflect on this year and manifest what’s next.” To learn more or to sign up, click here.
Wonderful! Thank you and happy birthday to The Kid
I’m smiling and crying at the same time. LOVE this post
And you and your adorable kiddo 
[...] I forget to have a sense of awe and wonder. There are certainly moments that could inspire it. Like Melanie Sidwell, there are certainly people in my life who do. My dog definitely gives me moments to inspire [...]
The Kid is alright! I read the prompt before going to bed and was thinking along the same lines of “wonder through my children’s eyes,” since after all we parents do our part to cultivate it and that is literally what the prompt asks for. I guess as an adult, I don’t feel that I “wonder” anymore, maybe I need to.
Still, everytime I hear someone say coyote or read that word anywhere – the first thing that I think is, “You can scare those aware with Melanie in a bear costume”!!!
me, too! i love telling that story.