the giraffe and the retriever

Have I mentioned lately my thoughts about how different kids are from each other? It's really astonishing; my kids, their friends, neighbors, kids in her class. All so different. The way you approach each child necessarily has to differ too. It's a rather interesting experience, wandering around in the world of children. And what occurs to me these days is that adults aren't all so different. They come in something like 10 flavors. We’ve been pounded into our round holes, made to fit, and adults often seem to be, to some degree, a type. But children! When you really talk to them, listen to them, you realize they aren’t types; they are wholely and fundamentally unique.

You'd think we'd resemble each other more, adults and children, something like zebras and donkeys. But the difference is greater: more like the rhino and the domestic dog. Four legs both, two eyes, nurse their young. Okay, maybe the giraffe and the domestic dog; they do both have fur.

Still no resolution on the preschool thing for next year, though I’m pulling back from wanting to keep Frances home full time. It was cold and wet for a few days recently and I realized that it does in fact get harder for me when the weather is gross. Winter is long here, you know. Dallying in the grocery parking lot is a lot less fun when it’s sleeting. Just being able to ride trikes in our driveway and draw with sidewalk chalk changes things dramatically. Maybe I can simply relish our non-school time in the summer. I still have a little time to think about it.