our walk

the mornings are cooling off here in st. george.
i look forward to this time of year.
the heat surrenders, as the cool air takes over.
it is my favorite time.

every morning my boys ask me the same question:
"are we walking to school today?"
and i always tell them yes.
"so we could get good exercise! right mom?"
again, i tell them yes.

but really, it's more than that.
it takes us about 10 minutes to walk to school.
hardly enough time for them to "get good exercise."
they hop, run, skip, race, jump over cracks, and spin.

sam watches for, and points at all the birds in the sky
dylan copycats connor's every move,
connor teaches dylan: how to skip, count, and have "super speed."
i watch. and listen. and smile. and sometimes i have to fight back tears

like today.
the boys held hands, while connor taught dylan how to skip.
"step-hop-step-hop-step-hop"
followed by: "you got it dyl!"

sam giggled and babbled at herself while i pushed her in the stroller.
she has a lot to say these days.
she likes to talk to everyone and everything
her hands. those sweaty, sticky little fingers have a lot to say too.

on the way home dylan was tired
it was peaceful.
the air was cool, and it was quiet
dylan noticed it too.

"mom, it's so quiet."
i am so glad he recognized the peacefulness
those are the moments that i cherish
we talk and laugh and giggle and play

but my kids are learning to recognize peace
and in this crazy world,
that is all i can ask for.
peaceful moments. with them. for them