Sometimes I forget just how little Malayna still is. She's six, which means she can brush her own teeth, (almost) take a shower all by herself, help set the table for dinner, go on playdates without me with no tears (never thought that would happen!)… The list goes on.
But then again, she's only six.
Her new favorite show is America's Funniest Home Videos. She loves the host, Tom Bergeron, and thinks he's the second funniest guy around (after her daddy, of course). Last night was the show where the winner of the funniest video gets $100,000. We asked her what she would do with all that money, and she said, "I would buy a pick-up truck." Jimmy asked her if she would buy him a Jeep, and she said that of course she would. I asked her what else she would buy, and she responded, "Would I still have money left over?! I would buy a husband. He will be Jewish, have brown hair, and be named Yair." (Our neighbor and her very good buddy just so happens to be named Yair.) She said they would live in California.
She then got very quiet. Her bottom lip started quivering and she said, "When I think about moving away from you I get sad." We told her we'd come to California with her (we'll follow her anywhere!) but she was already crying. She said, "Just thinking about it makes me cry." She cried for about 10 minutes.
Six is a funny age. She is so self-sufficient, wants to do things without our help, barely bats an eye when she leaves us, and for the most part would rather be playing with her friends than us. The cuddling she used to want 24/7 has whittled down to mostly once a day, maybe a little more if we're lucky. But then there are moments like last night when we're reminded that she's still our little girl.
All this talk about her growing up makes me think of the song The One Who Knows by Dar Williams. Have you ever heard it? (Get your tissues ready. We played this song at Malayna's blessing when she was about 3 months old and there was not a dry eye in the place.) This line gets me every time: "But sometimes I will ask the moon, Where it shined upon you last, And shake my head and laugh and say, It all went by so fast."
8 comments:
I almost started crying just reading you reflection...it really makes me think about how quickly my daughter will grow up. That was the sweetest thing I've seen in quite a while...except of course my little girl :)
Oh, Lisa - thanks for the warning about the tissues b/c I definitely needed one! I love the photographs and the thoughts you shared :)
That is so sweet and tender, Lisa. What a lucky daughter to have such conscious parents. As it happens, my son happens to be visiting from California right now and staying with us for a few days. Sometimes in the middle of the night I can't bear to think about all the miles and the states in between where he is and where we are. I only have sons. In our culture, sons are never permitted the kinds of attachments to parents that daughters are. It's not unusual for a mother and grown daughter to talk daily, or more often. Not so with sons. They'd be judged as "too attached" and god only knows what people would say about the moms. The love is just as strong, it just needs to show itself in different ways. It's also not unusual for young women to resent their husband's attachments to his family of origin. (But that's a whole other story!)
Hi Lisa, what a beautiful, sweet and tender reflection. What a lucky daughter to have such devoted and conscious parents. As it happens, my son is visiting for a few days from California! Sometimes, usually in the middle of the night, I can't bear the reality of the distance between us.
I remember when my girls were babies - I knew that when I tucked them in at night they would change that very night - in the morning they would be a little heavier, hair a little thicker, smile even brighter...
Now it seems I am so busy with them that I forget that today is the last day that they will be this little - thanks for reminding me Lisa.
Namaste.
This post is so sweet. I am sitting her with tears rolling down my cheeks and totally relating to everything you wrote. Sometimes I get so caught up in trying to get everything checked off the list. You're post reminds me that I have to stop and cherish the good and the aggrevating times because they're are growing up so fast!
this last pic is so cute
LOVE the pic of the two on the couch.
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