They are Only Young Once

I say it so often, I expect the expression to be old and tired by now. But, it is not.

On certain days when 4pm rolls around I feel old and tired myself. I am not either.

We go bouncing along. The children should see their mother on a pogo stick. Perhaps they should see their mother on a pogo stick more often. But, that might be a little hard on mother’s back.

When my sister chastised me for not owning one, she felt pleased that she would now have an appropriate gift for my 40th birthday. My first thought was that I must certainly plan to wear it out before my 80th. Yes, by then I ought to need a new one.

In the meantime, I must remember that they are only young once.

And, they should sit along a country road with their aunt, waiting for their cousin's school bus.




They should pick out a brand new and incredibly awesome bike that they will have to grow into, only to show off that they don't need to grow into it, and later scrape their knee and not even cry, because the bike is not even slightly too big for them.

They should try something new and go faster than their mother prefers.

They should investigate a cat, up close.

Go on, crawl after it.

They should make rediculously large cookies with their aunt who uses a 1/4 cup scoop when Mom only makes them tablespoon size. Well, at least she USED to.

They should play outside.

They should stay up past bedtime to watch their Mom and Uncle and Grandma dissect a 4 1/2 pound lobster in a buttery orgy of culinary goodness. On second thought, they shouldn't watch that, but it sure made Mom very happy.

They should explore an old playhouse.

They should see animals without paying admission.

They should keep that honest-to-goodness smile on their faces.

They should take a stroll with Grandma through the historic district, if they can keep up with her. After all, they are only young once.

Some of them make it last a lifetime.

Yes, that is a rare picture of Mr. MIT Mommy. He borrowed Andrew's bicycle. He is sleeping and doesn't know that I took this picture. Shhhhh.



This is what it looks like when the pogo stick wins. With a little more practice, I will be better than my niece. (Please don't tell her I'm practicing. I think the element of surprise is my only hope).