The three of them
I looked around the table at the faces watching me
and decided what I needed was a nice hot cup of tea.
Three grandchildren waiting for the never-ending food,
I wanted to enjoy them while I was in the mood.
Their smiles always cheer me, they really make my day.
Each is truly special – in their own particular way.
I love the way their eyes shine and the funny things they say,
their minds are quick and witty, learning new things every day.
Their faces glow with wonder as life's mysteries they unfold,
challenges, dreams, inspirations - their ages make them bold;
at thirteen, ten and five years old, their lives are just beginning.
When they go home I'm tired, but in my heart I'm singing.
“My patience, resolutions and beliefs are tested to the limits – sometimes daily.”*
Right at this moment one of my challenges is the constant, tuneless whistling from my elder son. When my boys were babies it was getting them to sleep or trying to figure out why they were crying. On any given day now, it might be squabbling, fighting, teasing, screaming, shouting or rudeness. Who’d be a parent? We might well question ourselves after the event, but we can’t very well put them back! Just how we find those inner resources, how we constantly demand more of ourselves, how we keep marching up that hill with a smile on our face and gladness in our heart at the sight of our ‘babies’ is one of life’s mysteries.
* © from Being Mummy by Anne‑marie Taplin published April 2007