One of my best friends has a daughter. I remember being with him when he got the (surprising!) news that he was going to be a father, and his daughter, Sophie, is now almost 4 years old.
I try to see both my friend and Sophie every time I'm back home. Each time I marvel at how much smaller the cooking pot her dad puts her in to take pictures has gotten, how many more words she can say, and how far her personality has developed.
I usually go over there for dinner, play with Sophie, give her a bath, put her in her PJs, and read her a handful of books before I help him put her to bed so then he and I have some time to catch up. This time was no different - except when we put her to bed.
This time, she asked me to rub her back after we tucked her in (something her dad does to comfort her). So I sat on the floor in the dark near her toddler bed, leaned over it, and ran my hand up and down her back so she could sleep. I was watching her eyes blink and the way her eyelids opened slower and slower when she took reached out with one of her hands, put it in mine, exhale-sighed, and closed her eyes all the way.
Something happened to me then.
This feeling splashed through my body me when she did that. It was a mixture of fondness, love, comfort, longing, and peace. It was an amazing feeling, actually, and I remember being surprised that such a simple thing from such a small child could be so powerful.
Children will never cease to amaze me.
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