Beauty

After a long week of my daughter having the flu, I decided that she deserved a few minutes of outside time. The weather was beautiful and I was in the mood for some fresh air....

The ducks swam in all directions avoiding the still floating thin layer of ice on the water.  They soared above our heads flying with grace and purpose.  Some landed, some seemed to disappear into the sky.  Some forcefully and proudly walked toward bystanders demanding food.  One little girl made a squealing noise and ran for her mother.  Mother patting her on the back of her head and mindlessly throwing out more bread not really seeming to notice how distraught the young girl was.  A couple walked slowly from a green Ford holding left overs in a wrapper headed for the mass of ducks in front of us.  He was limping.  She held his arm tight.  They smiled as they passed. My daughter was in awe of the beauty of it all. The duck sounds, the water ripples, the child hugging her mother's leg, the sun, wind, the boy in the swing being pushed by his father. The wind was chilly but we stood for a long while, her wrapped in my arms gazing out seeing some familiar sites, some new.  The couple walked back to the green Ford, the father and son were sitting on the top of the picnic table and the little girl and mother had disappeared.  We made our way back to the car.  The lady in the green Ford asked me how old my daughter was and I told her that she was 10 months today. How time flies, she told me.  She told me she had wanted a little girl but couldn't have children.  Before I could stumble over my words trying the find the right thing to say, she looked at me very seriously and said, "but I have the best husband in the world." 

What beauty we saw today.