Kids Make Life Exciting

Let me tell you something I’ve found: no matter where you go, kids are kids, kids are cute, kids want to play/run/laugh, and kids say the darndest things!

Along these lines I have 3 brief stories:

#1: Picture a 4 year old girl sitting on a bus with her doll. She is gently stroking its hair and talking quietly to it. Isn’t that a nice little scene that could bring a smile to someone’s face?  Now replace that doll with a black tennis shoe. Ha! Now that just makes me giggle AND that’s what I witnessed on the bus a few days ago. This little girl was sitting alone on the bus, one of her shoes (not like a cute shoe, but a black tennis shoe that is required for her uniform) was off, and she was cradling it and gently petting it. Every so often she would ask it a question or tell it something nice. It was great! It doesn’t stop there. She was also a very sleepy little girl (what 4 year old isn’t after a long day at school?) so as we continued on, her eye lids got heavier and heavier. Before long the head bob was starting. You know, the one where the little one starts to fall asleep and their chin drops to the chest and it wakes them up? Well as her chin dropped to her chest, her nose went full out inside of her shoe. I sat there chuckling to myself. I must commend this little one: #1 – thank you for making me laugh #2 – girl, you’ve got one heck of an imagination!

#2: I was walking up the sidewalk the other day and about 50 yards ahead of me I saw a little girl (around 5 years old) accompanied by an older gentleman and an older lady. The first thing that caught my eye was the man was holding the little girls hand: cute. The second thing that caught my eye was in the man’s other hand he was holding a cigarette: fail. Bro, you’re supposed to be setting a good example for this little one with whom you are walking hand in hand! Then, as I approached them, the little girl’s voice chimed in (I’ll translate for you gringos :) , “Grandpa, they told us in school that it’s bad to smoke. You need to stop. <fake cough> <fake cough> <fake cough>” My eyes were then drawn to the woman ( I assume the grandma) as she let out a giant belly laugh. She continued to laugh as we passed each other and the little girl continued fake coughing. The whole scenario brought the biggest smile to my face. Way to go little one, watching out for the health of your abuelito!

#3: As you may know, I ride the bus to school every morning. What you do not know, is the cutest little guy also rides my bus. He’s probably around three, has the biggest brown eyes, and always comes on the bus with a smile that takes up his whole face. His eyes are full of light and he’s ready to take on the day! Just watching him get on the bus is enough to turn a sour day into something wonderful. Can’t I get on the school bus like this every day?

Well, what can I say, kids make life exciting.