Rockwell Moments...

A couple of Sunday afternoons ago, after enjoying the warm temperatures of the day, my wife and I fell into the couch for some DVR.  (Digital video recorder,not code for something exciting...). We scrolled through the recordings as my wife held our son, who was somewhere in between nursing and falling asleep mouth open, a milk-drunk smile on his face.  

It was almost 8 o’clock and our windows were open as the summer-like temperatures dragged into the dark. Outside, we heard happy little screams of excitement.  I walked over to the window, a smile spreading on my face as I watched the scene in the neighbor’s front yard.

In the waning hours of dusk, a little girl jumped and skipped through a twirling lawn sprinkler.  Her faithful companion, a blue tick hound, followed at her heels, barking playfully with each leap. Crickets chirped, the sprinkler ticked, and with the glowing moon hanging over the roof of the house, all that was missing was Norman Rockwell and his paintbrush.

After last week’s events in Boston, I started thinking about the important things in my life. As a brand new dad, I look forward to the days my son can play in the yard and fill the evening with laughs and giggles. (Every neighborhood should come with laughing children, it would cut depression in half.) As a father, I sympathize more with victims of tragedies. Not that I didn't before, it's just different now.  I found myself thinking back to that simple scene across the street and the innocence of childhood.

So here’s to those special moments.  Whether it be the inviting aroma of of the backyard grill or the smell of freshly trimmed grass.  Lighting bugs, whiffle ball, an ice cream truck, whatever takes you back to those sticky summer evenings from your own childhood.

Tomorrow brings the unknown, as in an instant our lives can change forever. But for a moment on a Sunday evening, the simple scene of a little girl, her dog, and that sprinkler in the yard reminded me of all of the good still in this world.