Postcards from the bubble...

On my way home today, thinking of Gord I might add, I saw up ahead two girls on the side of the road. It was a very residential area and I was driving quite slowly so I was able to get a good view of them. They were about 11 - 13 years old. There was one girl standing under a nice big branchy tree (that reminded me of the tree that used to be infront of my house as a kid). The other girl was laying back on her elbows on the grassy incline on the edge of a front yard.

Anyhow, what caught my attention was the one girl threw something (I think a branch) up into the tree. Nothing returned. She then grabbed another branch and again threw it up into the tree. I then noticed that something was up in the tree - some kind of pink belt thing-a-ma-jig. Well, what stayed with me was the laugh that not only she burst into, but the completely innocent fun filled laugh that the other girl was breaking into. It just made me think of childhood - not only mine, but the innocent child hood behaviour that I look forward to Gord embarking on. Seriously - a big smile came across my face and all my concerns about his future and the troublesome temptations I can't help but think he will come across faded away, and it felt good to be a parent.

With the smile still stuck on my face all the while basking in my parental bliss I rounded the next corner... up ahead is another group of kids on the other side of the road - with one girl about the same age maybe younger, 10ish, standing in the middle of the road. As I approach, meanwhile slowing right down to 10km/hr or so she's looking at me hand on hip, with this look that screams, "that's right, i'm standing on the road... what are YOU going to do about it"... and her 'posse' back on the side of the road with their own expressions on their face like "Oh my God, she is soooo standing on the road, I can't believe she is actually doing that, she is SO keewwwl".

So being a parent now, and all 'responsible' I come to a complete stop about 10 m infront of her until she moves off to the sidewalk, and I just give her a metaphorical 'wag my finger , you should know better' look, cause that's right, I'm the grown up, and I always get last say... or so I thought.

As I drive off, realizing the slight contrast between the two situations, I still held on to the last glimmer of hope that Gord's childhood will still be filled with innocent fun, and realized we all did the 'harmless' dares that little miss daredevil embarked on... until I look in my rear view mirror to see the TEN year old little girl, giving me the finger!!! WHA?

The next thing I heard was a loud pop - it was the bubble I so briefly lived in.