A Pile of Good Energy

I decided to spend most of the day with my son today. He leaves soon to spend a long while with his dad, and I'm starting to panic a little, so time with him is good. I wanted still to continue with the message of the week, so I started gathering things from our house to donate to the local battered women's shelter. I'm delivering them Thursday, after getting donations from people in our neighborhood (I already have a bag of food from a family member). It's so rejuvenating to get rid of things...even more to give them to people who not only need them, but really appreciate them. I can't even imagine what it must be like to run in fear to a new place, surrounded by unfamiliar sights and sounds and routines, especially with children in tow. Resilient as they may be, it surely can't be easy. That said, a little home-y flavor is always a good thing, so take the time once in a while to give things you no longer use or need to people who really do need them.

My son left a really lovely comment on yesterday's blog post while at my mom's house. I cannot describe in words what it feels like when your child is proud of you. I can only think to say that it is better than when your parents are proud of you, and that's a great feeling. Today, while cuddling on the couch, he said, "So, explain to me again what this project thing is about."
"Well, I'm just trying to do the things I feel like I'm supposed to be doing. I'm trying to be a better person, and maybe help the world be a little better too."
"Yeah, your heart's good. You've always been a lot like me, Mom."

What can you even say to that? I giggled and told him that if I'm a lot like him, I really should be proud of myself. He smiled. We cuddled more. Please don't grow up....

While chopping veggies, making dinner, and dealing with simmering black beans that seemed never to be "at the desired level of tenderness", I asked my kids to go through their room and see what they could come up with to donate. They were (semi-surprisingly) so excited to give things away, they called me in to see their progress every two minutes, which explains the ring of dried black bean juice around the eye of my stove. Within fifteen or so minutes, they had put together a pile of toys in the middle of their bedroom floor. They went through every, single thing with me, explaining why another child might like to have it, and why they no longer need it. It was awesome. Yes, they took a few things back out of the pile when they realized what they were doing (haha), but they also added a few toward the end. They felt so good about it! I'm really proud of them, and the attitude behind it. I could hear them talking from the kitchen, Evan explaining over and over again to Ayla the principle of the thing; Ayla would agree, find something, and ask him if another kid would want it. "Absolutely!" he would say. Together, they have made someone's day, and they'll never even see that child's face to confirm it. They did it, because they knew it was the right thing to do.

The photo of them says so much. I asked them to lay on their bellies next to the pile they put together, so I could post it on my blog (they have no idea what a blog is, and though I attempted to explain it to Evan, even the internet is still a strange concept). Evan promptly put up peace signs, which Ayla saw him do, and was in the process of displaying as I snapped this photo. Perfect. Just perfect.

Look in Galleries to see this photo...

A pile of toys is so much more than that. In this case, it was a pile of good energy.