A gift

There is a gift that can be accepted gracefully, then there are gifts that should be re-gifted to someone who will appreciate the scent, the bubbles, the light.

I wonder when my children will realize that a physical gift from them is less important than their presence and time gardening with them.

The silent sentinel lifted the heaviest things for me without complaint until I gave him the option of sorting river rocks, he smiled a silent thank you.

The eldest did the bulk of the weeding of dandelions from the beds before I removed the plants.  Then he moved pots out of the weeds, upsetting an entire ecosystem of spiders, centipedes and ants.  He made sure we all had water.  He has become a thoughtful young man.

My child, made it clear that he was not exactly in the mood to be helpful.  After finally threatening to videotape him and post it on Facebook, he calmed down and sorted tiny Sedum plants into small containers, until he went inside to get water and fell asleep in the chair.

Girly had a field day, pacing in her playpen outside in the air.  She laughed at the neighbor cats and pointed at the birds and the sky.  We kept her in the shade, but she still managed to get a tan.

My gift was all four of my children together participating in something I hope they will remember from early childhood and their late teenage years. I can hope it will be a fond memory.