Pretty good week

My good friend has been teaching her students a lot of poetry lately, and Leeor just got me Mary Oliver's latest collection, Thirst. Plus, it's National Poetry Month! So far, I have only read one of the poems from Thirst. It's been almost a week and I am still absorbing it. As it's Passover as well as Semana Santa, it feels appropriate to share.

Praying

It doesn't have to be

the blue iris, it could be

weeds in a vacant lot, or a few small stones; just

pay attention, then patch

a few words together and don't try

to make them elaborate, this isn't

a contest but the doorway

into thanks, and a silence in which

another voice may speak.

As I typed her words I felt in awe of the way she put them together. Poems can be so timely; this one will forever remind me of this spring in 2009, when Avi turned 14 months old. Yesterday, I was walking up the hill in a hurry to get home to my bear. It had rained in the morning but the sky was clearing, the wind was blowing and it smelled so cool and fresh. I was wearing my raincoat anyway and grateful for my turtleneck and cords though they'd felt so out of season when I got dressed. Then I saw Avi in M's arms, and also M's sister in the doorway. It was the first time Avi didn't go crazy when he saw me. He was more interested in exploring. Off we went; Avi walking uncharacteristically fast on the uneven sidewalk and me frantically trying to keep up and keep him from tumbling down the steep hill. This is how it is now, isn't it?  

And I mentioned his language in the last post.  It just keeps exploding.  New words this week include cookie and 'Nita for M's sister.  Today was the most amazing.  He has this little alphabet book, a gift from our share care family, that has magnet letters and corresponding pictures.  The magnets are always all over the place.  We were hanging out after his bath, reading books, when he sauntered over with the letter "A" in his hand.  He passed to me and said, casually but succinctly, "A." That was all.  I almost plotzed! 

Then he went to bed and a friend from work came over for some living room yoga, which is one of my new favorite things.  Now, Leeor and I are on our respective laptops while Avi slumbers below.  It's been a pretty good week.