One day last week, Lily was getting very bored of being inside, and was becoming cranky. So, I took her out onto our back deck with the dog. I sat down in one of our patio chairs and let her stand in front of me holding my hands. She didn’t want to stand for very long – which is unusual for her, so I picked her up and sat her on my lap. I watched her, expecting her to want to play or chat or sing with me, but instead, she just stared at the trees. She was watching everything – the leaves blowing in the wind, the dog pacing around us, the bugs and birds flying around – all with this look of awe on her face. I thought to myself, ‘I hope that as you get older you can hold onto the awe and wonder of life that you are feeling right now.’ No adult sits to watch the rain fall down the window or the leaves blow in the wind, we all understand what is happening and it is simply background noise for us.
Outside the window in Lily’s room there is a very large tree, the branches almost touch the windows. When I change her diaper throughout the day I find she will twist her body in such a way that she can watch the leaves out the window. When she wakes up from her naps and I open the curtains, she doesn’t look out the window to check the weather or to see if there is anyone around, her gaze goes immediately to the leaves on the tree. I hope that she will continue to enjoy the sight of the trees as she grows up, and that she never loses the awe she has when she watches the leaves move in the wind.