Walk in the Park.

It was really cold on my walk through the park yesterday. The bright blue of the sky and multitude of brilliant sunshine was deceptive, making me think that it would be warm enough to venture outside. To walk through the warmth of the sunshine was not so bad – but the second I stepped through the shade of a tree perched alongside the sidewalk, it was uncomfortably cold.

I walked to the rec center, thinking I would find a little relief from the chill while looking up information on the facility. A mom was walking away from the building as I approached. The two- or maybe three-year-old had unknowingly dropped one of her mittens as I passed, and I picked it up and brought it back to her.

She stopped as she saw I was approaching her. “Oh, hello!” she said. I laughed at her grown-up sounding greeting.

“Hi sweet one! Is this your glove?” I held out the fuzzy polka-dotted pink mitten.

She knew immediately. “Oh yes. That is my glove.” Matter-of-factly, she took the mitten from me and walked back to her mom. I kept smiling at how grown-up she seemed.

As I got closer to the door of the rec center, I discovered it was closed. President’s Day. Who knew?

The mom and two girls were still meandering around in the open grassy space of the park as I passed them again. Mom was helping the littlest one put her pink mittens back on as the older sister of about six busied herself with walking in a very careful, straight line.

“Where are your gloves, sweetheart?” Mom asked the older daughter.

“I didn’t bring them,” she answered quickly.

The mom paused, judging how to react. “Alright. Well, don’t ask me where your gloves are when your hands start to get cold.”

The little girl kept her sights on the straight-line she was still walking. “When my hands get cold, I won’t ask where my gloves are. I’ll KNOW where my pockets are.”

I laughed aloud and looked over my shoulder at the mom, still knelt down with the youngest. “She’s resourceful,” I giggled.

Perspectives change. Just like those of us who grew up needing glasses, what you see and perceive is different than those around you, and you learn to shift and change to meet the demands of your ever-changing sight. While some might see the necessity of a pair of warm mittens, you may be content to just put your hands in your pocket. Either way, you both see a need for warmth. I imagine this little girl might be the kid who would rather move closer to the chalkboard than wear her glasses. She has that sense of resourcefulness.

Me? I’d prefer to wear my mittens and keep my glasses on.