These Moments

There have been things that have happened in the last few weeks that have made me realize that I need to treasure these moments more. Often I find myself too busy trying to cross chores off my to do list, and moments like these are missed. Repeatedly, I scold myself because every mother has read at least a portion of this wise poem: 

Song for a Fifth Child

Ruth Hulburt Hamilton

Mother, O Mother, come shake out your cloth,

Empty the dustpan, poison the moth,

Hang out the washing, make up the bed,

Sew on a button and butter the bread.

Where is the mother whose house is so shocking?

She’s up in the nursery, blissfully rocking.

Oh, I’ve grown as shiftless as Little Boy Blue,

Lullabye, rockabye, lullabye loo.

Dishes are waiting and bills are past due

Pat-a-cake, darling, and peek, peekaboo

The shopping’s not done and there’s nothing for stew

And out in the yard there’s a hullabaloo

But I’m playing Kanga and this is my Roo

Look! Aren’t his eyes the most wonderful hue?

Lullabye, rockaby lullabye loo.

The cleaning and scrubbing can wait till tomorrow

But children grow up as I’ve learned to my sorrow.

So quiet down cobwebs; Dust go to sleep!

I’m rocking my baby and babies don’t keep.

My bathrooms need to be scrubbed from floors to ceilings, but if I'd chosen that chore today I would have missed this; Jack pushing a delighted Luke in the swing. 

I would have missed this child's giggles, which I ran inside to get the video camera to capture. Coming soon...

I wouldn't be able to laugh at Jack's expression in this photograph. 

Oh, how sad Jack would have been if he had not had these moments with his kitty cats today. 

Children grow up as I've learned to my sorrow. I don't want to miss a moment. 

Because these are the moments that make everything worthwhile.