[about]
[archive]
[notes]
[profile]
[library]
[diaryland]
2018-09-02 - 7:49 a.m.
everything is going to be alright
we arrive in christchurch at the inflection point of springtime. it feels as if the world had been waiting for us to bloom. my parents meet us near the damaged cathedral, which gives my dad engineer's anxiety. they suggest a series of small trips that a toddler cannot do, and decide to go on without us. i take the baby to the natural history museum, the botanic garden, the art museum, and a truly marvelous playground. the next day, he wants to go back to "duck-bill dinosaur," "tree park," "yellow round-and-round the moon." he falls asleep before we make it to "big green slide, wow big slide." he is still too little for this slide, but it fascinates him. i love the names he gives to things. the energy of this city, with its street art and scaffolding, makes me feel like things could be different.
* * *
we make a day trip out to arthur's pass. from his backpack on the trail, the baby spots birds and lets us know, "i see that! i see that!" they are riflemen, which are the only living sister to all other perching birds and therefore among the most scientifically important birds on earth.we pass ice climbers hitching back from the trailhead, windburned and smiling. we cannot stop for anyone, because our car is full. a long time ago in a different life, i had planned to go ice climbing in the himalayas with an adventure friend, who was no longer my friend when i became ill. this memory dogs my heart. oh, the life i could've had. oh, the life i have.
* * *
reading: our friends gave the baby a number of books - the nucleus of a new zealand child's library - and he insists i read them over and over. he likes seeing things in books from his real life, and vice versa. meanwhile, i am working through the pile of new yorkers that built up in the mailbox while we were gone.
listening to: i'm on a bossa nova kick. also, the baby is playing actual pleasant music on his toy xylophone, using a pair of cylindrical building blocks as mallets.
working on: despite a jetlagged toddler who shared a stomach bug with the rest of us, i am making slow progress at putting the house in order.
in the garden: oh, my poor garden is overrun with grass and weeds and i have not had a moment to help it, but it does not hold a grudge, spilling out strawberries and red ripe tomatoes. we had the neighbor's child water our plants while we were away, and everything looks so lush and green that my husband is now terrified of our water bill.
|