Just Kickin' It

The opportunity to 'go back in time' is one I appreciate. Tremendous value can be found in immersing oneself into a place that has been left literally unchanged for decades.

Last night I had the opportunity to "just kick it" for a bit down at the Reaney Park Swim Pool in Pullman, Washington.

Now, mind you, I love swimming. I've found some of my most treasured memories are somehow attached to the the laughter, closeness, trust, activity and family nature of swimming -- particularly outdoor swimming.

Friday is movie night at our place, and Justin was home in-time to hang with the kids while I snuck away for a quick swim . . . or, more my case at this point (we have 5 weeks to go before the arrival of a new member of the family), a slow manatee like swim with most yards dedicated to the joy of simply kicking.

When I swim, my mind clears, the rhythms of life seem to beat within, and I can see and feel what is important.

So, as I let myself melt into the waters of this simple Palouse pool, life's fast ticking clock stood still for a bit. And, as I kicked away to the accompaniment of the slowly setting sun, muted laughter, and music floating from the speakers on the pool deck, I looked to the playground just beyond the gated fence of the pool and thought, "Yes, Oh Lord, you have so blessed me."

• I am lucky to know the fatigue of chasing with eyes and hands children at playgrounds.
• I am blessed to be the hand that is there to catch, just in case -- all while saying, "That's right, stay focused, you can do it, Mr. Independent" (even though I may really want to say, "Oh no, don't climb there, you need to be bigger" . . . the kids usually do very well. . .but still my hand is there just in case).
• I am lucky to know that in loss God is still present.
• I am lucky to have witnessed placidness as we waited for more children to roll into our lives like rumbling rapids.
• I am grateful for memories of swimming with my own family -- being carted to the pool in a wheelbarrow pushed by my father. A wheelbarrow teeming with the precious cargo of boisterous little bodies of me, my sisters and brother and voices saying, "Go, Dad. Faster!"
• I am so lucky to have been taught by example that the simple moments are what matter.

I had one of those simple moments while kicking it. And I had one of those simple moments occur at another 'swim night' a couple weeks ago. This particular moment was with my son, William.

We too spent a little time just kicking it. Both of us with boards extended. I will remember his little sun-kissed face looking up at mine as we kicked side-by-side and chatted while the laps passed us by and he'd ask me things such as, "Hey, Mom. So how was your day?"

God blesses us.

I don't think we need the most modern of facilities, programmed activities, and the like.

Perhaps there is something about, "Just kickin' it".

Perhaps those are the moments that will become framed in our minds and present themselves as we travel into glory. . .

Bidet in the Park

Caught you by the title?
Just a quick note to capture the cleansing joy that is found in sweet moments of parenting.
Today, the boys and I headed to Klemgard Park, a lovely touch-of-nature that thanks to grant monies and responsible as well as dedicated employees and volunteers, is perhaps one of the most peaceful and family-friendly parks in the Palouse.
We began our journey with apples in our mouths as we headed up the 'Klemgard Trail'. For some reason, I can't quite fathom why (wink, wink), the motivation to hike the full-trail magically explodes into full-swing for each of the boys when they remind each other that juice and Oreo cookies await them at the top. Ah, the power of sugars rarely secured by their taste buds.
So we hike, look for tracks, cross exciting bridges of felled logs, discuss why spiders seem to throw their little webs on you when you hike, what to do if you ever encounter a mountain lion, etc. Good naturalist excitement and wonder.
Upon concluding our hike, we returned to the picnic structures below to finish off the morsels of Oreo remaining in the snack bag. Careful attention, of course, was paid to equality for all . . . apparently, some things are able to bring out the most astute mathematician in each of my young boys. . . sugar equality being tops.
Anyhow, we followed up this part of the journey with much laughter, tag, words of "Way to persevere or Hey, Mom, look, I'm persevering" as the kids taught themselves how to master a new area of the kid's playground. Perseverance is a key word we're working on this summer and seems to be a natural joy when it results in a new found adventure that teeters on mortal danger -- yes, you can find such options at a local park play-ground.
But. . . the best. . . was how we finished the journey.
Pure fun in running through the sprinklers that were being tested on the freshly mowed grass of Klemgard.
Running and the drama of reenacting the death that comes from being shot by a sprinkler. . . the boys run, then when they get hit by the sprinkler, cry out in the joyful agonizing mourns of a soldier wounded in a battle he couldn't wait to fight as he falls in the grace of a young football player that always remembers to roll, roll, roll in order to quell the impact of the fall a bit.
In this performance, death looms for 10 seconds, and then it's time to get back up, covered in grass, and run through the battlefield all over again.
Alas, all battles must end and to my children's chagrin, many end in, "OK, boys, it's time to go". And this day of discovery and battle was such a day.
However, one thing Mom wasn't too excited about was having wet and grass covered kids get in the car so I asked them to go back to the sprinklers to 'grass off'.
As I carried some of our wet attire back to the car while they followed the Sargent's commands, I glimpsed back in response to unadulterated laughter reverberating in my ears.
And what to my wondering eyes did appear?
Well, kids bending over backwards, laughing, as the sprinklers shot directly their rear!
It really was quite hilarious as I imagined, "This, this right here, this must be a boy thing! I had no idea an 'Enema in the park' could be so entirely fun-filled."
I guess the French must have experienced a day like this many years ago as well.
Play must be the precursor to invention, no?
Good day. . .